Sword Art Online: The Shadowed Avenger
by TenebrisWolf
Summary: Sword Art Online, the VRMMORPG made for the NerveGear, where players are caged in a Virtual World of the developer's creation. Within, lives will be risked, friendships will be created, and enemies will be defeated. Follow the adventures of one of the 10,000 players, in which he might beat the Death Game that has captured so many, but will he do it for his own gain? Or everyone's?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1:**

Across fields of green and yellow, of deep forests and seemingly endless plains of peace and order. The natural way of things. The sight of a large, steel building floating over the landscape. A majestic Castle, guarding the secrets and places of this one unique world.

Aincrad, the structure was called. The world of one hundred floors, all there, ripe for the taking. The land of Argus, of the creators of this world, the first of its design.

The genius who created this world, Akihiko Kayaba. The man who developed the Full-Dive Technology, in years and years of constant study and research, the technology wanted by previous generations was finally achieved, and produced.

Kayaba had also made a Videogame for this specific console, for the NerveGear, the headset required for Full-Dive. Just recently researched, the technology utilizes the electrical nervous signals from a person's brain to the whole body, neutralizing, and subsequently utilizing them so as to use them for the in-game mechanics and gameplay.

To see, smell, taste and feel what it's like to be fully in a virtual world. To be fully immersed in the world of someone else's design, to live in a world in which the only difference between it and the real world, is the amount of information.

Sword Art Online. That was the name of the first VRMMORPG created by Argus Industries, by Akihiko Kayaba.

After being in development for years, the game was finally announced and launched into Beta Test. Japan was the stage of this important step in the history of technology. Japan, where only one thousand players were chosen for the Beta of the game.

It hit the year of 2022, in the month of November, Sunday sixth. The Launch of Sword Art Online.

Castor Orion Vusent, better known as 'Corvus', was one of these players. A middle school teenager, gamer from a young age, and a history and computing genius called by some of his fellows and elders.

With raven black hair, hazel green eyes, and standing at a height of five feet and eight inches, Castor managed to blend in with most of his schoolmates, which he tended to prefer.

Never being much of a people person, Castor always kept to himself, being the most talkative with those older than him, professors and friends of his mother in the majority.

A loner, some could tell. His family always questioned why was it that he spent hours upon hours of his time playing video games, especially those for computers.

He knew they would not understand his reasoning, but it was simply so he could have an escape route out of his family's expectations, and the pains of attending school.

Games were a passion of his, as he started playing them, and working with computers in general as well. His family expected him to have the best of marks, the admiration of his fellow students, and the trust of his teachers and school managers.

To say the least, he hated it.

His family had always been successful in all they did, having industries and businesses under them, some politicians and even military.

His closest family was his mother. His extended one included his uncles, cousins, and grandparents. His father, he had had bad experiences with him, and never wanted to see him again.

A usual pastime of his was his reading, which he did when distressing himself, diving into the universes of some famous writers he knew about. Fantasy and Science Fiction were his favorite genres.

Castor was finishing one of his recently acquired fantasy novels when he stepped into his room.

Said room was simple and tidy enough, he believed, his desk on one corner of it, with his computer, its accessories like the keyboard and mouse, and its large screen on top of the blurred glass top of previously said desk. There was a mirror on the opposite wall along with a closet, which was built into the wall. His bed, a Queen-sized mattress occupied half of the room, his dark blue covers on top of it. With light walls, and a wooden floor, the room was simple indeed.

"Talk to you later, mom! Don't get too bored in your meeting." He almost-yelled as he sat on his bed with a chuckle.

The response came from the other side of the door. "I'll try not to, love! See you when I get back home later!"

Then came the sound of the closing main door of the house, which in itself, was more than enough for two people, if way too comfortable.

"Now what to do…" Castor muttered under his breath as he moved to his desk chair, a sigh escaping him. He picked up one of the technology and gaming magazines that laid on his desk as he read some more about the development process, and the person behind Sword Art Online.

He would have begun to read, if not for a call from his smartphone. Castor smiled as he realized who it was and quickly took a better position and put the phone on speaker. "Hey bud. What's up?"

"Castor! I can't believe it's here! I mean, it's now! I already have it here, in my room, all connected and prepared. Just waiting for the right time." Said a male from the other side of the call, a good friend of Castor's, one of the few. Young like him, a genius with all that came to numbers.

Castor chuckled as he responded, "I'm glad, bud, that you have everything ready. Do remember, we'll meet at the first village after the City. It shouldn't take that long to get there."

"You mean, you shouldn't long! You lucky bastard having played from the Beta, know how it is by now."

With a glance to his NerveGear, and another one to the alarm clock by his bedside, he knew it was time. Twelve in the afternoon, with fifty-five minutes.

Once the computer's screen had turned on, the web browser was set on the MMO Stream, the girl's voice played on Castor's headset as he put it on.

"Hi there! Time for this week's MMO Stream! You just saw a promo of today's featured game, and this is what last week's launch date looked like." The video turned to show large rows of people, in the edges of boulevards around the city, and at their beginning, a gaming shop.

"Can you guess what's everyone in line for? Sword Art Online!" The camera moved to a sign which contained said game's name, a screenshot on the background, and the release date.

The Stream then showed a group of players who had been waiting for the game in line. Four called Castor's attention, a redheaded guy with a scarf on his head, the other with a bandana, a guy with an afro styled haircut beside him, and one that looked like he was part of a punk band. The chat by the stream had comments typical of gaming channels, as usual.

"The first person in line said they camped for three days. Hey, but if you're a hardcore gamer, that's what you do! On today's episode of the MMO Stream, we'll be covering internationally famous Sword Art Online, aka, SAO. Up to now, none of the NerveGear software was taking advantage of the possibilities of the hardware-"

Some barking from the neighbor's dog caught Castor's attention temporarily, and not before long, he focused again on the stream.

"- Akihiko Kayaba! Hey, this is the VRMMO that me and everyone else have been waiting for! The Beta Testers say it's incredible! I wish I could've gotten one… The first selling only limited to ten thousand copies, those fans in line snatched them up, and online, the game sold out in seconds!" The girl followed with her narration, cheery as usual, as Castor pressed the stream off, shut down his computer, and connected his NerveGear.

Once he laid down on his bed, the headset began its load up, the two lights on top of the visor turning on, the sound of the system becoming more and more noticeable as the circuits and scanners activated one by one.

Then it started to beep, one and two, the time showing twelve and fifty-nine in the afternoon. Castor smirked for a moment, knowing what was coming.

Did he doubt what he was doing? Consider what he had to do later, in the evening? No, he just threw himself into the world he loved.

The NerveGear beeped three more times as Castor closed his eyes and said, "Link Start!"

Suddenly, a wall of white filled his view, only for a rain of colored cylinders to fall on him, the sound of the system activating sounding high-pitched briefly, only for circles to begin to appear in front of his eyes.

One said 'Touch', then switched to OK. The next one had 'sight' and followed as the last one had. They lined in the side only for two more circles to appear. The first said "Hearing", and the other "Taste." The last one had 'Smell' on it. The circles lined to the side again, and turned green before dispersing.

The Language Selection followed, to which Castor selected English. Then the login screen, which he quickly completed. Character Selection was next, where the system said that his previous character data from the Beta was detected, Castor chose to load it.

The screen then turned grey and in big, thin black lettering said, 'Welcome to Sword Art Online!'

What followed, was the last loading screen, the system's sound came again as several shades of blue lighting fell onto Corvus' view, which cleared in seconds, only to reveal an almost mosaic-like sky, polygons flying away.

Heartbeat, was what Corvus heard as he blinked and looked around. He looked down upon himself to notice he had his previous gear on, and for some of his hair to fall on his face as he muttered, "Aincrad, hello again."

A black haired player in front of him fisted his hand for a moment as he said, "Hello world, I'm back."

Another Beta Player then, Corvus realized.

The building in front of the plaza reminded him of a giant temple, with its circular top of darkened glass, it looked majestic. Behind him, an obelisk stood.

Quickly, cheers began to be heard all around as multiple lights appeared around him, which signaled the arrivals of other players, and in less than a second, several of them appeared. Music could be heard around as fireworks began to light up the sky not long after. The game had just begun, he realized.

* * *

Running through the streets of the City of Beginnings, Corvus noticed the multitudes of players in the markets and the alleyways.

In one of the nearby markets, some of the old beta testers, who recognized him, offered him one of the 'Guidebooks' they had written for the new players. While they told him he didn't need one, he took one nonetheless.

Once he had bought himself a dagger, and not long after, a long sword, along with a shoulder-pad and new boots, Corvus was ready for the hunting that would occur once outside the walls of the city.

He knew the nearest, less-expensive shop near the Main Plaza, where his favorite trader had brought in a new series of items after the Beta Test. There he had gotten his items, and mentioned it to a few new players in the streets along the way.

Corvus wore the colors of black and blue, the latter as a trim for most of his armor. Luckily, he normally used the same combination.

Panting after running the last few minutes, he stopped at the small plaza at the entrance of the city, and sat down in one of the benches along the grassy area. A tree above him gave a nice enough shade as he observed the players around him.

He leaned back slightly as he swiped his hair off his face again, the same strands falling onto it as he rested.

The players around him, some in groups, some walking along the streets alone, observing, gave him a good insight of how many new ones there would be outside in the plains. He would need to find a hidden spot to hunt down some boars.

As he walked along the plaza, he realized that it always surprised him how the Town of Beginnings looked like a mix of different cultural architectural styles. Not European, nor Japanese, nor Islamic, or anything in between. All a mix, a mending.

Sitting in the edge of the fountain in the middle of the plaza, Corvus noticed a female player that had just entered by the same alley he had approached. She looked around, in what he assumed was curiosity, before turning to face his way, a bright smile appearing in her face.

She wore a white beginner's dress with leather shoulder pads, and brown boots. With raven-black hair that shimmered in the sunlight, blue-silver round eyes filled with curiosity and excitement, a small button nose and thin eyebrows, the girl's features were fair, and by Corvus' opinion, quite pretty.

The freckles he noticed as she approached made him think that she was around his age, though her skin was a bit paler than his own.

He got back to his Inventory screen, shaking his head so as to focus again on the task at hand, only to hear a "Hi there!"

Corvus curiously looked up, only to see the same player he had observed inches away from him. "Hey. What's up?"

A newbie, or someone who knew him. Either or both she had to be for her to approach him like that, in such a friendly manner.

The smile she had seemed to widen as a soft color painted her cheeks, "I'm sorry for bothering you but I was curious about something… You were in the Beta Test, weren't you? You seem to know your way around."

Corvus blinked for a moment as he looked around, answering as he turned back to her, "I was in the Beta, yes. Why?"

"Could you help me get to know a little more of the game?" She asked sheepishly, the same grin on her face. "I just logged on and still have much to learn. Say when you need a tutorial but the game doesn't have one." The girl giggled underneath her breath as she watched him.

He chuckled for a moment at the mention of a tutorial. Gods knew how much he had needed them every once in a while. Then he considered the ides, helping a newbie get around. While he didn't have much patience for teaching, at least having someone around won't be so lonely.

The help from another player was always welcome as well, as there was only so much a solo player could do on his own.

"Sure thing, though you'll have to keep up with me." Corvus smiled at her after responding.

"Really? Thank you so much!" The player beamed at him, a gleam to her eyes confirming her happiness as she sat down next to him, and spread a small hand towards him, "I'm Anna, it's a pleasure to meet you."

Corvus turned to face her as she sat down, noticing the inches in between them as he spread his hand as well and shook hers firmly, though softly.

"I'm Corvus, the pleasure's mine." He looked up and down at her for a brief moment before saying. "Now there's the first task for the day which would be to level, of course. And the fastest way for such is grinding."

"Careful, that I've played my few MMOs by now as well, Corvus." She seemed to throw a smirk his way before continuing, "I just haven't done a Full-Dive before."

The black haired swordsman returned her brief smirk with one of his own before saying, "Right then, a field I know lays to the east of the city, on a hill. Boars there are enough to get us half a level in thirty minutes if we go slow."

In a quick movement, he stood from the fountain and stretched his arms for a moment, only to watch her stand beside him, realizing she reached to his nose in height at best.

Anna looked up at him, smiling and said, "You lead, I'll follow."

Corvus nodded as he turned towards the gate, and trotted towards it. Looking over his shoulder to see Anna following after him, reaching him after a few seconds.

Once she smiled at him again, he smirked and darted in the direction of the fields.

Along the way, they passed by dozens of players, some waving towards them as they ran to a more distanced plain.

Corvus saw the black haired player from earlier, and a red-haired man with a bandana of the same color. He reminded him of one of the players shown in the MMO Stream from earlier. They were training, Corvus realized, if the Rock Throwing Sword Skill and later the redhead's dagger's Sword Skill was any indication.

Once far enough from the city, enough that they could see the entrance still, but distanced from other players grinding as well, Corvus and Anna stopped their sprinting.

One of the brown boars grazing around the field stopped its idle movement, and turned to face them, huffing and tilting its head downwards, then upwards as its tusks shone with the sunlight.

Anna doubled over while she breathed, her hands on her knees as she panted, "It shouldn't feel this way… Knowing that we're in a virtual world."

Corvus raised a brow curiously as he looked over his shoulder towards her, a slight smile on his features. "Just as like with pain, tiring or exhaustion is something we don't exactly feel. Rather, it is part of our consciousness to feel it, as we always do in real life."

The black haired girl seemed to stop her panting before straightening up again. Corvus tried hard not to notice some bouncing as she did so, and later approached him. "So if I pinch you, you would not feel it then?" She revealed a hidden smirk as she swiped hair off her face.

The swordsman chuckled as he answered, "I would feel it, yes. Though it wouldn't be exactly pain."

She gave him a mischievous smile before unsheathing the longsword she had at her side, and aimed its tip towards the boar. "Now let's see how to swing a sword."

Anna pulled back for a moment, bending slightly as she crouched slightly, the hilt of the sword against her side. With a yell, she charged towards the boar, and moved her arm aside, sword ready for an open slash, and swung.

Only for the boar's tusks to block her strike, and its legs to kick the ground beneath it, pushing her back, and towards the ground.

"Ouch…" Anna groaned as she rubbed her backside, where she had fallen upon. Corvus tried not to laugh as the boar reared, its paw hitting the ground twice.

"So you don't know how to use a Sword Skill then."

The girl turned to stare at him at that.

Corvus laughed for a moment and said, "I'll teach you then. First things first, the pre-motion. The positioning." At this, he thought about using his fellow swordsman technique.

Anna raised a brow curiously as she watched him, eyeing what he did next from her position half laying on the grass.

Corvus picked up a small rock from the ground beneath him, pulling his arm backwards as he turned to face the boar. The rock lighted up in a golden light, the sound of the Skill charging filled one of his ears as he continued.

At seeing such, Anna's brows raised in surprise, muttering under her breath, "Pre-motion…"

"The system will identify what skill you'll attempt, and in a way, you'll need to finish it, to drive it to the end. Watch!" He exclaimed, his eyes towards the backside of the boar.

In a quick movement, he threw the rock towards it, and like a bullet, it hit home. The boar made a wheezing sound as it practically bounced ahead, with a red mark on its dark fur, turning to face Corvus after, and kicking the ground again, challenging the player.

Anna by now, had stood from the ground and unsheathed her longsword, positioning her footing right before moving her arm backwards, ready for an ample slash. Once she stood, the blade began to glow red, and a smile appeared in her face.

"That's it! Now drive it home." Corvus stepped backwards so as to clear the way for his companion.

He watched as Anna stepped forward, and the Sword Skill kicked into action, throwing her ahead as the blade drew a line through the air, and cut through the boar's middle as she yelled a quick battle cry.

Once she went across, the boar exploded into light blue polygons, and the loot menu appeared in front of Anna as she stood, with a wide grin on her face. Corvus noticed the after effect of the Sword Skill didn't take long at all as she brought her arms together and seemed to throw her hands upwards.

"That was awesome!" She whooped as she spun on her heel, a laugh coming from her lips as she began to give a little cheery dance around him.

Corvus smiled at her as he said, "And once you practice enough, it'll become easy for you to fall in with the system. You'll learn the Sword Skills with a bit of time."

Slowing down to a walk moments after, Anna continued to smile towards Corvus, giving a nod to his words before pointing ahead. "Then we have to grind and level up as much as we can."

With a grin, the black haired swordsman unsheathed his blade again, and prepared a Sword Skill, a moment later being thrown against a nearby boar in a bullet-quick speed, a streak of blue being cut through the air as he did so.

Anna followed the attack with one of her own, her blade swinging in a downwards slash across the animal's head. Blue polygons filled their views.

Once they took a breath after, the loot menu appeared in front of them, only for them to do a high-five after.

"So how long have you been a gamer for?" Anna asked Corvus as they both searched through their inventory.

"Honestly I can't remember. I guess I've always been interested in games. Always had an interest in a fun escape from the real world." Corvus slid a hand to slot his new Pierce Sword Skill on his skills.

"Many problems in real life?" Anna's voice sounded curious.

"Many expectations, actually."

She followed with a quick nod before asking, "Siblings?"

"None. Only child so far." He offered her a smile once he closed his menu and glanced around. "What about you?"

Anna swiped a hand as she closed her menu before sitting down on the soft grass beneath them. "I have an older sister, she's in university. I found games to be fun when I was seven." She gave a slight giggle and continued, "I still remember getting beaten up each time I played shooters."

With a smile at her words, Corvus asked next, "So what drove you into SAO?"

Anna hummed for a moment as she leaned backwards, "I believe trying to find something better than the real world. I've always found society to be… How to call it…"

"Distant?"

"There you go." She clicked her fingers as she grinned. "And while I'm a city girl, I'm not a fan of shopping."

Corvus feigned a relieved expression as he brushed invisible sweat off his forehead.

Anna rolled her eyes for a moment, and looked back at him. "How far along did you get in the Beta?"

He gave her a slight smile and he said, "I was playing it more casually than I should have. Floor 7 is as far as I got within the Beta month."

She gave a tilt of her head while she muttered, "It shouldn't be hard to move up some levels with a large group of players, if you did it only with the other Beta Testers."

Corvus said nothing at that, but motioned with a hand, before offering the same hand for her to take and rise.

Once she did, and brushed the back of her dress off any grass it may have had, she pointed ahead to a group of wolves a bit to the distance.

They began sprinting, and quickly, two lines of blue could've been seen soaring through the air towards the monsters.

* * *

Dusk was a beautiful sight in the virtual world, they realized, a couple of hours after they had started their grind for Experience Points.

The way the colors managed to blend in together, the orange, yellow, and even darker blue mixed in to make a light, tranquil sky as the sun set slowly into the horizon. The floating islands around, some with trees or small towns atop them, the large birds lazily gliding in the currents of air above them. The small lights, orbs of them, began to light up every few hundred feet along the roads or interesting spots gave the landscape a feeling of ease, of relaxation.

Corvus and Anna were laying down on the grass, one across from the other, lifted upon their elbows as they conversed. The girl had her legs crossed at her ankles, Corvus merely rested them on the ground as he looked around them, enjoying the breeze that ruffled his hair every once in a while.

"Homework, now there's one thing I hate."

Anna scoffed at that, the lazy smile on her face seeming nothing but purely relaxed, "I find it to be invigorating, gives me new things to do."

Corvus rolled his eyes at her words, and gave her a smirk as he responded, "You do like school though, and studying. Which is for nerds, perhaps?"

The death stare she gave him was enough to make him laugh as he returned to laying down completely.

"Guess I should call you lazy then, for not wanting to do your homework!"

"Hey!" He suddenly lifted again, returning the death stare she had given him.

Anna only giggled, and then smiled at him as she said, "Do consider that you played every day during the Beta, with the NerveGear all the time. While this is my first time using it." She paused for a moment and said, awe in her voice, "Still can't believe that we're on a game either… Feels almost like real life but even way better. Kayaba is a genius."

Corvus hummed as he asked, "So is it your First Full Dive today then?"

"Yup! I got very lucky though. I rushed out to get all the hardware required for the NerveGear, and to play SAO as soon as my parents granted me the money. Stood in line and got one of the ten thousand copies." She grinned at him as the teen beside her stood, and stretched his back, "If I was lucky, then you were ten times as lucky, I mean, considering only one thousand got to Beta Test it."

Corvus leaned his head backwards, before rolling it as he said, "I guess I was lucky, yes."

"You did say you had gotten to Floor 7 as well, so in the two months of Beta, did you actually play almost non-stop?"

The young man smirked at that, "Yes, but now I can get there in a month easily."

Anna laughed beside him as she commented, "Someone seems like he's stuck in the game."

He unsheathed his blade for a moment, and swung it twice as he said, "Perhaps. I was focused in the game during the Beta, non-stop." He breathed out as he stared at the blade's edge as he continued, "As I said, an escape. No limitations, no expectations, especially when considering that in this world, one blade can take you anywhere you wish to go." He moved the blade so it lay against his shoulder, "In this virtual world, somehow, I feel more alive than I ever do in the real one, motivated, with more reason." Corvus smiled at recognizing the feeling before giving a slight shrug and sheathing his blade across his back again.

"I know what you mean…" Anna seemed like she would say something else, though retracted, shaking her head as she then said, "But as much as I'd like to continue talking… I have a homework due for today at five thirty."

"And I've been feeling hungry for a while now, though food here can only satisfy that virtually."

The girl giggled as she stood again, and watched him, "Do you normally feel hungry, Corvus?"

"At times."

"Well then, I believe I should be logging off before someone in my family disconnects something."

At that moment, Corvus' stomach chose to betray him as it grumbled, which caused Anna to release a short, surprised laugh.

"And I'm lucky that I normally get an afternoon snack right about now."

"Then we're both fortunate that the game can wait until we return."

Corvus hummed at that as he glanced towards the Town of Beginnings in the distance.

"Hey, Corvus." The girl stepped towards him, getting his focus again, "I promised some friends of mine that I'd meet up with them after this. I'm not sure if you'll be busy later, but maybe you can come with us, and, if you want, you can friend them and be with us."

The swordsman seemed to consider it for a moment, releasing a low sigh as he looked down momentarily.

"I mean!" Anna continued as she noticed his motion, "It's alright if you don't wanna, no problem. I can always introduce them to you at some point later or something."

Corvus looked up again at her, expression neutral as he thanked her, "Sorry though. Thanks anyway, for the invitation."

"Don't you! No sorries. I'm the one thankful to you." She smiled and patted his arm, "One day of these, I promise I'll pay you back for all this, virtually, of course."

The black haired teenager smiled at her and nodded slightly, "Anytime."

"Thank you, Corvus, for everything." She laid her hand on his arm guard. "I'll see you around the game then."

The swordsman grasped her arm in return, and shook it gently, "If you have any questions or just need a bit of help around, message me, alright?"

"Alright!" She grinned up at him, "I will."

She moved to walk away, turning her back to him as she waved goodbye, and proceeded to open her menu to logout, after which Corvus began to step away, only for her to say, "Wait, what? Where did it go?"

"The button should be where it was placed earlier, if that's what you're wondering."

"Nope, not there."

"Bottom of the Main Menu, you sure?" He said as he stepped back to her, his hand swiping downwards as his Menu opened, yet showed only the symbol to log off, and not the word, the button seeming to be untouchable, blocked.

"See? I told you, it's not there." Anna fell into an insisting tone for a moment.

"You're right, it's not. Strange." Corvus narrowed his eyes for a moment.

The girl gave a shrug of her shoulders as she said, "Considering it's first day out of Beta, there's probably more than a few bugs. Can you imagine the development team's reactions by now?" She gave a soft giggle at that.

"I can imagine yours as well, you know."

"What do you mean?"

He pointed at the time in his menu, "See this, it's five twenty-five."

Anna's eyes widened for a brief moment before squealing, "Oh no, the mathematics homework! The teacher will be so mad at me for not sending it at the assigned time!"

"Did you try contacting the Gamemaster by now?" Corvus said as he turned fully to her.

"I did, thrice." She motioned at her menu, where the call to the Gamemaster was still trying to connect, "But it's not working. But is there any other way to log out?"

The swordsman tilted his head for a moment, considering his options as his eyes narrowed. "No. The only way for a player to log off is by doing so by the Menu."

"You're joking? There's got to be some way other than that." So she crossed her arms and grumbled before raising a hand and yelling, "Logout!"

When nothing happened, and the sun was blocked by a passing cloud, Corvus said, "I did tell you. And if you read the manual-"

"There's no emergency log out… Damn. And with no way to move ourselves in the real world, we can't remove the NerveGear off our heads."

"It does intercept the signals sent by the brain thanks to an interface built into the rig." He patted the back of his neck with a slight frown.

"So… We just wait until Argus fixes the bug?"

Corvus motioned with a hand as he responded, "Yes. Or until someone in the real word removes the headset from our heads."

"I'm sure my father will notice that I keep myself logged on for too long… I hope." Anna muttered. "What about you?"

"I live with my mother, she will notice that I'm still on by when she gets home, I think."

The girl hummed for a moment, only to hiss as something seemed to bite at her neck, she slapped away whatever bug it had been, then rubbed the spot and suddenly stopped. "Have to remember, this world doesn't hurt as much."

"Come on, back to focus. What's going on is weird."

"I know, and yes it is. You'd think they'd have noticed by now, or made an announcement…"

Corvus seemed to groan as he muttered, "Damn first day launch, something always happens… This means that there will be problems for the game. And I do wonder if the devs even know what's going on. As they can log everyone out and shutdown the server with a simple command."

It was Anna's turn for her gaze to narrow for a brief second, only for both to turn at the sound of the ringing bells coming from the city. "The hell…"

* * *

Light blinded them for a few moments, only for them to be teleported to the middle of the Main Plaza, the bells kept ringing as they looked around and saw hundreds of players continue to be teleported in. The noise was near deafening after seconds.

The other players kept wondering what was going on, most of them looking alarmed.

Corvus realized what was going on, the forced teleportation.

The sound of the ringing bells stopped as a system message appeared above the main dome of the central building. "What in…"

'Warning', said the message, and hundreds of the same and some that said "System Announcement' flooded the sky above them, until the skybox was completely covered in red, the system messages all over the place.

Blood began to flow down from the spaces in between the messages, the streams combining as a mass formed, hanging from the sky. Suddenly, it began to inflate, something like electricity lighting it up momentarily as it formed into a shape.

"What in hell is that?" Anna muttered loud enough for Corvus to hear.

A form now floated above the plaza, gigantic in size, larger than even the main building. The Gamemaster's red robe covered it, and its hooded features were completely obscured.

Muttering and noise began to fill the silence of the plaza again, only for the figure to lifts its massive hands, and say, "Attention players! I welcome you to my world."

"What does that mean though?" Corvus whispered, glancing to the side where the same black haired player from earlier now stood.

"I am Akihiko Kayaba, and as of this moment I am in control of this world." The Gamemaster said, much to the shock of some players.

The swordsman's eyes widened at that, remembering the man he had studied, and learned about as he heard and read reports from the NerveGear.

Muttering began again around him, the players conversing in low voices.

"I'm sure most of you have already noticed an item missing from your Main Menus, the logout button." The giant man lifted a hand slowly, then swiped it down to reveal a large menu, where even his logout button didn't show. "Let me assure you, this is not a defect in the game. I repeat, this is not a defect. This is how Sword Art Online was designed to be."

"He's got to be joking, right?" Anna glanced at him briefly, Corvus still viewing Kayaba above them.

"You cannot log yourselves out of SAO. And no one from the outside will be able to shut down or remove the NerveGear from your head. If anyone attempts to do so, a transmitter inside the NerveGear will discharge a microwave signal into your skull, destroying your brain and ending your life."

Several gasps were heard around them, a soft one coming from Anna, muttering filled around them again.

He noticed some players trying to walk out, only to be stopped by an invisible wall around the plaza.

"It can't be..." The girl beside Corvus looked at him, her being upset was clear in her features. "Are you listening to this? Can it be, Corvus?" Anna turned to him after questioning.

"Yes it can, and it is… The transmitter's signals in the headset are practically microwaves. If the safety is disabled, it can outright fry your brain."

Anna seemed to remember something as she gulped and muttered, "And the internal battery doesn't help the situation if the NerveGear is disconnected."

"Exactly." Came Corvus' answer as Kayaba spoke again.

"Despite my warning. The families and friends of some of the players have attempted removing the NerveGear. An unfortunate decision to say the least. As a result, the game now has two hundred and thirteen less players than when it began. They've been deleted from both Aincrad and the real world."

Corvus' eyes widened a he muttered, "So many already?"

Anna beside him shook her head quickly.

Around Kayaba, various windows showing the news channels and several news reports in the web began to slowly spin around him. "As you can see, International media outlets around the globe cover everything, including the deaths."

'Online Game Incident Claims Numerous Victims', Corvus could see upon one of the windows. "At this point, it's safe to assume the likelihood of the NerveGear being removed is minimal at best. I hope this brings you a little comfort as you try to clear the game."

Corvus blinked at that, his gaze then widening as realization hit him.

"It's important to remember the following. There is no longer any way to revive someone within the game. If your HP drops to zero, your Avatar will be deleted from the system, forever." Kayaba stopped for a moment before saying, "And the NerveGear will simultaneously destroy your brain."

All those deaths Corvus had taken during the Beta, all those mistakes, he needed to make sure they never happened again. His hand curled up into a fist beside him. The players around him, quiet and still, shocked.

"There's only one way for a player to escape now. You must clear the game." Kayaba swiped his hand down to reveal the map of the floors of Aincrad. "Right now you are gathered on Floor One, the lowest level of Aincrad. If you can get to the Dungeon and defeat the Boss, you may advance to the next floor. Defeat the Boss on Floor One Hundred and you will clear the game."

Muttering around him started again as players began to talk. Some still unbelieving, not trusting Kayaba's words.

Anna beside him whispered, "To clear all of them will be nearly impossible… Even the Beta Testers never made it that high."

Kayaba's hand lowered as he continued, "Last but not least. I've placed a little present in the item storage of every player. Please, have a look."

Corvus opened his Inventory only to see one new item called 'Mirror.' Which resulted to be a small mirror, and he stared down at it to see his avatar's reflection.

Suddenly lights began to appear around him, covering players in blinding blue beams, the girl beside him as first, "Anna!"

In a moment, Corvus himself was covered completely, most players around him now looking different as he then opened his eyes again.

"You alright, Corvus?" A raven black-haired girl with bright blue eyes stared at him, hair style the same as Anna's.

"Yeah… Wait. Who are you?"

"I'm me. Who are you though?"

Corvus lifted the mirror again, only to stare at his real face and features, just a younger face than his avatar's, almost the same hair, his real one covered his ears almost completely, his eyes back to their normal hazel green.

Talking erupted around them again as players began to point at each other.

"Wait a second!" Corvus suddenly said.

"Is that you, Anna?!"

"Is that you, Corvus?! But… How?"

Corvus' gaze narrowed, "The high skin density scan device in the NerveGear… It can see what our faces look like, but how would it know how tall I am and my body type…"

"You remember that the NerveGear asked you to pat all over your body when you first put it on? This… Calibration thing." The blue eyed girl began to tap her shoulders and slim arms.

"That's where it got our physical data then."

"But… What's the idea of all this?" Anna moved a hand to her forehead, only for Corvus to point at Kayaba.

"He will most likely tell us. He'd be gone by now if not."

"Right now," Kayaba's deep voice resounded across the plaza again. "You're probably wondering why. Why would Akihiko Kayaba, developer of Sword Art Online and NerveGear, do this? Ultimately, my goal was a simple one. The reason I created Sword Art Online was to control the fate of a world of my design."

Corvus let out a low growl at that as he stared at the man.

"As you can see, I have achieved my goal." Kayaba paused for a second, then continued. "This marks the end of the tutorial, and the official launch of Sword Art Online. Players, I wish you the best of luck."

With that, a sound of interference began to fill the void of Kayaba's silence as his body began to dissipate, smoke rolling back into the sky. Only for dusk to cover them, the normal yellows and oranges of the sky showing again.

The silence was absolute, and the shock was was written in players' faces.

Corvus realized the changes that had just been announced. He knew it was no longer a simple game anymore, it was now real instead. Kayaba had created a world, he had designed the NerveGear and knew the man was a genius. He knew that everything he said was true. He could not risk his life, knowing he'd die in real life as well.

A mirror shattering somewhere around them, a girl's yell following it was what broke the crowd into gasping, sobbing, and yelling, some on their knees, or still standing there, in shock.

"Come on, Anna!" Corvus took her hand in his as he darted into the now empty streets of the city.

"Wait, but-!"

"Alright, I'm going straight to the next village from here. I suggest you come with me so we manage to get as much EXP as we can." The swordsman spoke quickly, with an edge to his voice.

"I wish I could, Corvus, but…" She glanced over her shoulder for a moment. "I told you about my friends earlier, remember? Right now, they're in the Plaza, most likely terrified and still on shock from earlier… I can't just leave them here and move along without them."

The hazel eyed player nodded his head slowly, understanding as he instead opened his menu, and quickly sent her a friend invite, which she accepted.

Corvus opened his map to point the way towards the next village, for Anna to see the route as well. "You know RPGMMOs, there's only some of all the money and EXP you can get to go around. The fields around the Town of Beginnings will be hunted clear by the other players. But if we head to the village now, we will get Col and EXP much easier and faster. Make sure to avoid the large group of enemies, and look twice into caves before entering them, you can get there easy even if you're still level one."

He seemed to consider taking Anna and her group of friends along, joining them, but he knew that would slow them down too much.

"I'm sorry, but I couldn't ask you to risk your life for a group of strangers, not when I've just met you." Anna said with a small smile, her blue eyes slightly shimmering. "Don't worry about me, but get to the next village quickly. I was a Guild Officer in the last game I played so I'm more than ready for this." Her smile became a grin as she announced, "And with your teachings this will be even easier!"

Corvus, quiet and seeming remorseful, said, "If that's what you want, Anna, I'll get a move on. But if you have any problems or just need help, I'm merely a message away, alright?"

"Of course!"

He nodded and began to step away, head slightly down as thoughts started to flood into his mind.

"Wait! Corvus… You know you're even more handsome like this. Way more than your avatar."

The swordsman smiled as he turned to look at Anna as he returned. "And I think your blue eyes just compliment your features perfectly!" The blush on her face made him grin as he turned to trot away, glancing over his shoulder to see the street empty.

And so he sprinted across the city, all the way to the exit, across the marketplace and the gates as he moved out of the Town of Beginnings, seeing a shape against the horizon way ahead of him in the road, noticing the light blue polygons of something dying ahead. Knowing it was someone, he kept running, not wanting to stop until he got to the next village.

He spun and slashed and stabbed through most wolves that spawned on his way, his blade leaving only traces of blue and golden light as he attacked, clearing his way.

The game was real now, and he needed to do his best to survive, no option otherwise, he would not die because of a game.

Corvus would not let the game beat him, as he was beating it first.

* * *

 _ **I guess I forgot to say something earlier! Hello everyone, and thank you for reading this long introduction for the story! I know, it seems too familiar to the original first episode of the series, but I do need a starting point! From here on, it starts differing, excepting the first floor Boss Battle. But after that, all free, limited only by the lore of SAO! I'd like to get some reviews, of anyone who'd like to send some, and encouraging always helps as well!**_

 _ **RL tends to be busy, so I'll try and update as often as I can, most likely in smaller chapters, though not so small! Just, this was an exception!**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**And just because I felt inspired this morning! Actually finished it not long ago, should be alright!**_

 _ **Thank you, Herosassin, for your encouragement! And thanks to all those who began following, and reading so far! We're only at the start of everything.**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 2**_

Corvus' arrival was as silent and unnoticed as he had wished, he could see no other players around the village's entrance as he came into the plaza.

Seeing a tool and weapon shop, he moved towards the first, buying one of the leather suits that were up for sale, using a small percentage of the Col he had gotten on his way to the village, which was called Horunka.

Once he had outfitted himself with his new suit of armor, the leather feeling comfortable, and not too tight, he moved into the NPC house he knew held the quest called The Secret Medicine of the Forest.

The NPC within the house, one of the village missus, invited him in and offered him a cup of water, telling him she did not have any food at the moment. That seemed a bit mysterious to him as he noticed a pot simmering in the fireplace against the wall. Corvus could tell there was something wrong, having already done the quest before.

Once he had accepted the cup of water, he heard the steady cough of a child on the other room. Knowing what to do up to this point, he asked the NPC if they required help.

In response, the NPC told him that her daughter had a sickness that seemed unfazed by any of the medicines obtained at the market. She had learned that the only medicine was procured from a dangerous, and rarely seen, flower's bloom. The ovules of these predatory plants, she told him, although few and far between, were the only source for the medicine.

In reward, she offered him the sword that had been passed down her family generation after generation. The Anneal Blade, it was called.

After accepting the quest, and returning the cup to the NPC, he went back outside and moved back to the plaza, opening his map to see the area where the flower bloomed, as indicated by the quest itself.

Corvus, once prepared, began to move down a forest path that would lead him near the area that was marked in a green circle on his map, it being in between the shrub of the small forest itself. On the way, he noticed more than a few monsters deeper into the green.

Large strange plant-like enemies called Little Nepenthes, with roots as their lower body, which moved along the ground as they walked around, more like stumbled with each step, a large, red mouth on what could only be their heads, white teeth easily noticeable. Their skin-like coverage was white, covered in red spots. All looked the same, at least the fifteen or so he had noticed until the path ended not a few hundred feet ahead.

He heard the slash of a blade nearby, a Sword Skill activating. Turning his head to the sound, he saw another player to his far right, slashing and stabbing at the monsters. He was probably searching for the fruit as well, yet this early here meant he probably knew about the quest. There were three options to the question, one was that he was a smart, new player, who decided to move before everyone else. Two, that he might have read it on the guidebook, which Corvus didn't know if it actually held the information on the quest. And third, that he was a fellow Beta Tester.

The swordsman was willing to bet for the third option as he saw the player's precise movements, the practiced stances. He decided to approach his fellow player once said man had sheathed his sword again, and looked around for more monsters to kill.

A crunch in one of his footsteps nearly made him cringe as the player ahead of him suddenly whirled around, sword in hand. Black haired, dark eyed, and dressed in a Leather Coat. There wasn't much else of notice to him, Corvus realized, though he thought they looked alike some.

"Easy there!" The hazel-eyed swordsman lifted his hands as the blade's tip was aimed at him, noticing the scrutinizing look the other player gave him. "I just wanted to talk to you, if you didn't mind."

The black haired player grunted for a moment before straightening again, and sheathing his sword upon his belt. "What can I help you with?"

Corvus approached further, stepping close enough so he could spread his hand towards the young-looking man, "I'm Corvus. I noticed you came here before all the other players. I was curious if you actually knew about the quest, or it was only by chance that we're the only players around here."

The swordsman across from him seemed to hesitate for a moment, before spreading his arm to shake Corvus' hand, a slight smile on his features as he responded, "I actually knew of the quest beforehand. I'm guessing you did as well."

The leather suited man gave a nod at that, then asked, with a curious tone to his voice, "Does that mean that you were a Beta Tester as well?"

His fellow player eyed him for a brief moment, "I am, actually. Name's Kirito. Good to meet you, and even better to know that I'm not the only one around here."

Once the two had shaken hands, they retrieved them, and seemed to noticeably relax their stances, now actually smiling at each other. "So, Kirito." Corvus asked, "Seeing that we're the only two around, and this quest can be ten times easier if we do it together, would you like to form a group with me, perhaps? We'll watch each other's back."

Kirito considered the proposition, then responded, with a slight chuckle, "Sure. Two fellow Beta Testers would make a great team, I'd think."

At that, Corvus smiled at the young man, who looked around his age, and opened his menu to send a Group Invite. Once received, Kirito accepted it, and both their health bars appeared in the right upper corner of the screen.

"So you're Level four as well then, eh?" Asked the dark-eyed swordsman.

"Guess I got there by beating the monsters on my way to the village, yes." Came Corvus' response as they stepped across the brush, looking for more Little Nepenthes to defeat.

"Then the quest will be even easier, considering they're our same level. Though I do wonder how many of them we have to kill."

"I do remember the drop chances were low. How many of them have you killed already?"

"About twenty by now. But the flower hasn't appeared yet."

Corvus hummed in response, looking at Kirito for a moment before asking, "Thoughts on the news given to us by Kayaba earlier?"

The young man's eyes steeled as he muttered, "We just have to survive. We need to beat the game and get back to our lives."

"Yeah. You think your family's noticed by now, that we've been stuck here for ours now? The clock does say it's near eight in the evening by now."

They looked around for a moment, seeing Little Nepenthes far ahead of them, far enough that they wouldn't be noticed by the monsters just yet. "I'm sure they've heard the news… Though I wonder how my mother and sister must be reacting."

Corvus noticed the way Kirito's hand fisted at the words, swallowing his reaction at thinking about his own mother in the real world, he muttered though, "They must be devastated, my mother included. I mean, knowing that we could die at any moment without their knowing, realizing that there's nothing they can do until we get ourselves out."

A sharp sigh came in response as the black-haired swordsman unsheathed his blade, Corvus following suit. "Let's just make sure we go back to them soon."

"Hey, you two! Hang on a minute!"

Both turned to the yell coming from behind them, blades still in hand as a brown haired player came towards them, looking to be their same age as they could notice. Both sheathed their swords as Corvus asked, "You're looking for the flower as well, I'm betting."

Said player, smaller than both of them, Corvus realized, stopped his trotting as he stood before them, smiling. Though his smile seemed forced. With a serious demeanor, the young man answered, "I am, actually. I'm Coper, by the way. I hope you don't mind a Beta Tester joining your group?"

 _Another one?_ Corvus glanced towards Kirito for a moment, then looked back at the brown-haired swordsman, who made a gesture with his hands as he lifted them, rubbing at his eyes for a moment, his light leather armor seeming to tighten under his arms as he did so. "Sure. I mean, if my friend doesn't mind."

Kirito simply shook his head and said, "I don't mind. Nice to meet you, Coper."

"Alright then!" The player opposite of them smiled, spreading his hand to shake theirs before motioning ahead of them, "We will kill them quickly, considering we're three. So how about we split apart? We can cover more ground like that."

Kirito and Corvus both looked at each other, considering the idea. The latter gave a shrug and said, "I'd actually prefer for us to remain together, considering the news we were given earlier today. Less of a chance that we'd be overwhelmed by the Nepenthes."

"Well then, you two remain together if that's what you want. I'll take the northern side." He pointed to their far right were a couple of Little Nepenthes stumbled around some.

"And we'll take the west." Kirito motioned behind him for a moment, before saying, "If you need help, we'll notice by your health bar lowering."

Corvus opened his menu again, and invited Coper to the group, his fellow player accepting it, watching as their health bars appeared in the screen along with his own. "Like this, and our maps should tell us where each of us are."

"How about a bet then? I can assure you both that I'll kill more Little Nepenthes faster than you two together. Fifty Col, sounds like a deal?"

Arrogant, perhaps a bit selfish. Corvus knew the most enemies you killed, the more EXP you would gain, even if the group allowed for the EXP to be shared in between its members. Coper's smirk seemed nothing but cocky, Corvus realized.

Kirito shrugged his shoulders as he accepted, "Sounds good to me. I'm sure that Buckler on your arm should keep you from getting much damage."

"That's right! Hence why I got it. I prefer using it rather than dodging all the time, you know, Sword Skills do need for you to get into stances quickly before using them. Dodging too much would probably leave me breathless before long."

Corvus had considered the idea of getting both a Bronze Sword and one of the same bucklers that Coper held, yet decided against it, knowing the effort of keeping the small shield up would take more of him than sprinting or rolling, or dodging out of an attack's way. "That should help you then. Be careful, and better not let them overwhelm you."

Coper smirked again, motioning with a hand before turning and unsheathing his blade as he stepped away from them, to the North. Not two steps ahead, Corvus noticed the gesture again, Coper's free hand lifted to rub at his eyes before equipping his buckler again.

Kirito muttered beside him, "He probably uses lenses in real life."

Corvus chuckled under his breath at that, "You just said what I was thinking."

Kirito smiled at him before turning, hand in the hilt of his blade quickly, his fellow Beta Tester following suit as they stepped into the brush, staring at the five Little Nepenthes ahead of them.

"You mentioned you had a sister?"

"Yes, and my mother. Why?"

Corvus' smirk was brief as he aimed the blade ahead, his legs bending slightly as he angled the tip of his blade, it glowing golden as the Sword Skill's sound began to resonate, then he said, "This one I dedicate so you can quickly get back to them."

A flash of golden light, was what Corvus seemed. A blur of black and gold as he cut through two of the Little Nepenthes a few feet ahead of them.

Both monsters bended backwards in a second, and exploded into tiny polygons as they died, said polygons floated away just as the three other monsters turned to him, and began to stumble for him, their spindly arms with pointed leaves at their tips gyrating quickly.

Their methods of attacks, he realized, must be avoided before striking. Corvus crouched under the gyrating blade-tipped leaves as he lined the tip of his sword to the Nepenthes' middle.

A blur to his right came right in the moment the Sword Skill he had charged activated. Leaving behind a trace of blue light, Kirito had cut through the two Nepenthes before him, a slash coming from above the monster about to finish the third, the same that Corvus was aiming at.

The result was spectacular, as both their Sword Skills combined into one powerful strike, both blades cutting through the monster's middle, one moving upwards, and the next moving downwards. In brief seconds, the Little Nepenthes exploded in polygons, both players' breathing the only sound around them.

They bumped fists after, both chuckling as Kirito said, "Thanks, and Corvus. That one was for you, so you get back to your mother before long."

"For beating this game and getting us both back to the real world." Came the hazel-eyed player's response.

"Exactly." They smiled at each other before turning at the sound of crushing leaves behind them, seeing at least six Little Nepenthes approaching them. Both angled their blades again, stances setting as Sword Skills charged. "One for each?"

"The one who kills most wins!" Came Kirito's voice as he slashed through the air, Corvus following right after.

* * *

They spent at least thirty minutes like that as the afternoon continued to darken the forest around them.

Cutting through dozens of the Little Nepenthes gave Corvus and Kirito a great amount of both Col and EXP both. They still hadn't found the one type of monster that held the flower on top of their heads, but they had kill nearly one hundred of their brethren.

They knew Coper was cleaning the northern corner of the forest, and had seen his health bar lower down to seventy percent before coming back up. They wondered just how long it would take them to find the quest objective, when Kirito's voice got Corvus' attention.

"I see it! Right over there, at the other side of the tree."

Corvus' eyes widened at the statement as he turned to look at the large monster behind the tree a few dozen feet ahead of them. Once he had finished with the Little Nepenthes he had been fighting with, a slash across what could only be its neck finishing the monster, and leaving a golden trace behind, the hazel-eyed player turned to look at Kirito behind him.

Kirito had cut through a couple of the same monsters moments after, breathing hard as Corvus finished his own prey before saying, "We have to be careful though, it could be one of the trap kind. The flower is red, just as the fruit the trap kind of monster holds on its head."

"Do you remember how to obtain the flower?"

"Yes, but I need you to watch my back while I do it." The black haired player angled his blade towards the tree behind which the Little Nepenthes was hiding.

"Shouldn't be too hard, considering how easily we kill these monsters by now. I do wonder if Coper will be coming along though." Corvus responded, his breathing becoming soft again after the strain of killing the Nepenthes mostly ended.

"I was wondering the same." Kirito opened his menu to send a voice message to Coper, telling him to get back to them as they had found the objective, sent it, and the closed it again as he smiled at Corvus.

"Let's clear the field in the meantime. Leave the one single monster to deal with. Once Coper gets here, we get the flower." Said the hazel-eyed swordsman. "By the way, I'm winning, you're one Little Nepenthes behind me."

Kirito smirked at that, "Not for long!" And suddenly darted past Corvus as his Sword Skill activated. The first did remember that he had to ask his fellow Beta Tester about what kind of Skills he normally equipped. He always seemed faster than him.

There were only three Nepenthes ahead of them, Corvus noticed as he sprinted after Kirito, slashing at the lower body of the second monster, the brush around them seeming to inch closer to them, the darkness being lighted only by the blue and golden strikes of their blades.

Once the second Nepenthes, which held one of the large red fruits atop its head, had been damaged by Corvus' first slash, causing it to bend forward as its spinning leaves grazed the side of the swordsman's cheek, which made his health decrease an inch. He growled as he cut the Nepenthes' vines, effectively stopping its attacks, and was about to finish it when another sword stabbed through the large red fruit above its head.

Corvus' eyes widened at seeing the fruit suddenly glow red at being stricken. The player looked up to see Coper, blade in hand, a smirk on his lips as he retrieved his sword.

"Guys! I got it!" Corvus heard Kirito yell from behind him. Coper was still standing there, a cocky expression on his features.

"You little piece of-!" The dark-haired player's voice cut as the loud sound of several dozen Little Nepenthes ran across the brush, effectively hunting them down to the small clearing they were in.

Corvus stepped backwards to stand near Kirito as his fellow player realized what Coper had done. The red fruit was a trap, and he knew it. He did it anyway.

Breaking the silence, Coper said. "I'm sorry, you two, but I really need that Little Nepenthes' Ovule to beat the quest and get that damned Anneal Blade. I'm sure you understand my predicament, knowing that that sword will at least get me to the next Floor, easy."

Kirito seemed to remain silent for seconds as the brush began to shake with movement, the Little Nepenthes quickly reaching their position. "So that was your plan all along, then. Take it from us once we were dead."

"Actually, I only need you to die. Corvus, you can run away now if you'd like." The tone in Coper's voice was a cruel one, cold.

Corvus practically growled in response, "You have to be stupid to think that I'd leave Kirito behind to die. I'd do that to you, Coper, but not him."

"Playing the hero now, are we?" The brown-haired player laughed as several Little Nepenthes came out of the tall grass and shrubs. "No matter, you both will die here anyway."

The swordsmen glanced at each other, knowing the path was to their right, where at least seven Nepenthes were approaching from. They both faced that side, blades in hand as they suddenly activated their Sword Skills, and darted from one monster to another. Coper had used his Hiding Skill, they realized, effectively becoming invisible in the brush.

As Corvus used the Slant Skill on one of the drooling Nepenthes, the plant's viscous liquid dripping on the floor, along with what could only be blood, he looked towards Kirito, who was grappling in between two of the monsters, ten feet behind him. With a quick maneuver, he charged his Sonic Leap Skill, and darted across the empty space in between them, and slashed from top to bottom with his sword, defeating the second Nepenthes as Kirito stabbed through the first.

Both were breathing hard by then, knowing that they'd be easily overwhelmed if the main bulk of the group of monsters attacked them. A pained scream behind them was the notice they needed to know that Coper's Hiding Skill hadn't worked, considering the Little Nepenthes didn't rely on sight to detect their targets.

Kirito's expression changed to one of pain briefly, before turning back to its serious, determined look as he glanced at Corvus, and nodded.

Both of their blades lit up, suddenly, one in golden, and the other in blue. Their eyes narrowed at angling the swords, seeing the three Nepenthes a few feet ahead of them. In a quick movement, they both released the hold on the Skills, and sprinted towards their targets.

Corvus activated the Vertical Arc Skill, slashing diagonally from his top left to bottom middle, cutting halfway across the Little Nepenthe to the left. Once his blade was near slashing completely through the plant, he readjusted the position of his wrist and twisted his blade right on time to perform another slash, this time from the middle of the bottom of his view, to top right, killing the Nepenthes he had first slashed through, only to cut through the head of the one in the middle.

Kirito and Corvus' blades clashed at the end of their Sword Skills, both ending up in the same spot. They both nodded at each other before sprinting back towards the pathway they had followed into the forest, blades angled to their fronts if they needed to defeat anything in their way.

By luck, they realized they had left the Little Nepenthes behind them, though they did not stop running until they reached the entrance of Korunka again. Both bended forward, hands on their knees as they recovered their breath.

"Coper… He's gone now, isn't he?" Asked Kirito with short breaths.

"I think he is, yeah. Traitor." Corvus panted as he responded, "Though damn it, he didn't need to die."

After a minute or two, they straightened, standing, both their chests still heaving slightly. "Happens when you're not careful, or you do something stupid." He paused. "This is not a game anymore." Said Kirito in a low voice.

The hazel-eyed swordsman nodded slowly at that, looking around the tranquil, darkened village for a moment before answering, "No, not anymore."

They both stared at each other briefly before turning to the NPC's house, where they had to return the flower. "Let's finish this then." Said the swordsman beside him. Corvus' heart caved in at the thought of abandoning his mother thanks to the Death Game he was now in. he knew he didn't need to think like that. He needed to focus on getting out of the game.

Once they had come back into the NPC's house, where the NPC kept a hopeful smile on her face, which only brightened as they gave her the flowers. "Thank you both, swordsmen. For giving me what I needed to save my dear daughter." She paused as she moved to her small dining room, and retrieved a long black sheath. "And here, as I promised, the blade that has passed through generations in my family. Please, have it, we have no use of it anymore."

Corvus and Kirito both got the prompt in their screens that said 'Mission Completed!', and a menu in which appeared their rewards, which were a considerable amount of Col, and a One-Handed Long Sword called the Anneal Blade, a Level four blade. The sword showed, as well, that it could be enhanced up to eight times. Corvus knew that in doing so, he would give himself a large bonus, much more damage to any monsters he faced.

Once the sheath and sword had vanished from the NPC's hands, she smiled at them and proceeded to move up the stairs to see to her sickened daughter. Kirito stepped ahead and followed her, Corvus tilting his head curiously before doing the same.

Agatha, was the NPC's daughter's name. She seemed pale on her bed as she lay, the cough had passed, but she looked mostly… Dead, to Corvus.

Kirito's eyes, he noticed, glazed over as they observed the NPC heal her daughter. The hazel-eyed man had the feeling that his fellow Beta Tester needed privacy. He watched him step forward as his hand touched the door's handle, and heard a sob breaking from Kirito as he kneeled by the bed, Agatha began to hold him comfortingly, stroking his hair.

Corvus seemed fazed by what happened, so he decided to walk out silently, and move into the tavern nearby, giving a look around the sleepy village before making his way inside the building.

Before long, Corvus was sipping on a warm plate of broth, and a cup of water beside it, in one of the tables, watching as the few NPC that remained in the building chatted away in between themselves. He heard the NPCs talk about the Elf Wars, the main campaign in the lower levels of the game, and obtained hints as to where to go in Floor 3 to start the questline.

Kirito entered the tavern moments after. Corvus smiled from the place he was sat, opposite from the door, to his fellow player. The young man seemed trouble, though smiled back at his companion after.

"Are you alright, man?" Corvus asked as Kirito sat in the chair opposite from him.

"Yeah, I am now. Thanks for asking." He paused for a moment at the curious look on Corvus' face and sighed, "Just memories. I once tended to my sister like the NPC did her daughter. It reminded me of her, and I guess, knowing our situation-"

"It broke you a bit."

Kirito nodded his head at that, then smiled. "So you do understand."

"Of course I do, we all need our moments every once in a while."

His fellow player swiped his hand down to open his menu as a waiter NPC came by, asking for what dish he would have, answering that he would have the same broth Corvus was enjoying. In a moment after the NPC was gone, Corvus received a friend invitation. "I was wondering about that." He accepted the invitation and smiled. "You don't tend to do that much, do you?"

A shake of his head came in response, Kirito's plate arriving just a moment after, along with a cup of water. "Not much actually. I don't tend to have many friends."

"Ah, that explains it then. You're a solo player as well." Corvus sipped on his broth, before saying. "I know it can be uncomfortable to meet new people often."

"Yeah, it can be. Luckily, those who really matter tend to be few and far between."

"I think the same, but considering our situation… I think it would be best to help as much people as we can. Gods know how the news could affect some people who are more… Sensitive, than us." Corvus' eyes lowered for a moment before looking back up at Kirito, who was enjoying the warmth of the broth.

"I know. And I'll do that by clearing Floors on my own, if I have to."

"We both know that's practically impossible. The game is made for you to win the Floors with a group." The hazel-eyed swordsman smirked slightly. "As much as we'd prefer otherwise."

Kirito smiled at him and said, "Glad to know I'm not the only one who thinks that way."

"Nah, you're not, and I think there's a few of us out there as well, just like us." Corvus nearly finished his broth as he eyed his companion for a moment. "What are your plans for next? The Tower?"

"Was thinking about questing my way through the Floor first. Upgrade the Anneal Blade, and prepare for the Tower next. I do know that there's a few Dungeons around, though I wonder if the world has changed at all since the Beta." Kirito explained as he continued eating, more like devouring, Corvus thought, by how quickly he ate. He must have been hungry.

"I did notice the drop rate for the Little Nepenthes' Ovule was that much lower. That, or we had no luck until the end."

Kirito chuckled as he answered, "If the day so far has taught me anything, I'm betting for the latter."

Corvus laughed at that, smiling, "Probably. But, I think we should rest now, considering that players will be coming around by tomorrow, and if we want to keep ahead of them, we need to get moving."

The black-haired swordsman suddenly quieted, before muttering, "Yeah, about that…"

"You want to go solo again?"

Kirito nodded.

"I understand, of course. And I think I'll be doing the same, myself."

Both looked down at their now empty plates before Corvus stood from his chair, and walked for the counter to pay for his room, and one other. He was given two temporary keys, and then returned to their table, offering the second to Kirito. "This one's on me." Corvus said, a slight smile on his lips.

Kirito nodded his head as he took the Key, then stood from his chair. "The game's only beginning. We need to be ready for anything."

"Which means we have to level up quickly, I know." The two looked at each other. Corvus spread his hand and fisted it, to what Kirito followed suit, and bumped fist with his companion.

"Let's get ourselves to the end of this damned game, shall we?" Asked the dark-eyed swordsman.

"To the end." Corvus answered.

"I'll be gone by the morning. I hope we meet again soon. Maybe at the Floor Boss?"

The leather-suited player smiled at that, "Sounds good to me. We'll see who's higher leveled by then, eh?"

Kirito smirked briefly before answering, "That sounds to me like a challenge." He stretched for a few seconds before saying. "We should get to our rooms and get some sleep."

With that, Corvus nodded, and moved towards their staircases, where they shook hands once more, and said farewell.

Once inside the small room, and its wooden door closed and locked behind him, Corvus opened his menu to undress his leather armor, wearing only in the pale undershirt beneath it as he laid down onto the bed.

His eyes closed as his thoughts ran rampant in his mind. One Beta Tester less. He realized some players would not care if others died as long as they got what they wanted. Then he thought about the challenge ahead of himself, and all the players. The one hundred floors of Aincrad awaited them, and they needed to get out as soon as possible.

Maybe he would clear the game, maybe not. But he knew he was not giving up without doing his best. With that thought in mind, and a smile on his face, he closed his eyes and dozed off. The First Day of Sword Art Online ended for him.

* * *

 _ **Will see if I have time, and inspiration, to write some more tomorrow. Reviews really do help! Constructive criticism or just encouragement. Writing this as we go, mostly, while I do have some important happenings for later! Also, took some inspiration from the Progressive Arc, on this one, do forgive if I missed dialogues and all, but you know fanfictions!**_

 _ **Thank you all for reading so far!**_

 _ **Again, reviews really do help for writing down some more!**_


	3. Chapter 3

**_And just because I felt (again!) inspired all of today, but tomorrow's early morning and busy week, so might not be able to write much until the weekened. Who knows though? I may get the right encouragements to!_**

 ** _*nudges to Reviews*_**

* * *

 ** _Chapter 3_**

The first weeks in the game were some of the most difficult to bare, Corvus realized.

During the second week of the game, most players seemed to have been asleep in the middle of streets, simply dropped into suspension mode.

It must have happened to him as well, though he could not remember. The date: November 21st, 2024.

No one had managed to advance to the next Floor, and Corvus knew the players' death count would keep enlarging by the day.

What didn't make sense to him was why no one had found the Boss Room in the Labyrinth by then. He knew there were different 'Clearing Groups' by then, players joined together to try to beat the game, but none of them had found it.

Luckily, Corvus had found some sense of familiarity at last. His Anneal Blade was now an Anneal Blade +4, improved by the crafter NPCs around for a fair amount of Col. But most days, he spent his time grinding, once he had already finished most quests in the First Floor.

The familiarity came unexpectedly. Even though he didn't know where his friend from the real world had ended up, didn't even know if he was in the death count by now, he got a message from an unknown contact.

'Meet me at the North-Eastern Lake, near its western ruins.' It said.

While it made him suspicious, Corvus' curiosity had been picked. So he followed the message, having already leveled high enough to defeat the enemies around in one or two movements, he became unworried about his surroundings.

Once in the ruins, grey stone walls and a large rounded gate, also made out of rock, being the entrance he had gone into at least fifteen times by then, he was familiarized with the area.

Corvus leaned back against one of the pillars as he looked down towards the lake, which was less than a kilometer away from him. In the space in between the ruins and the lake, small forests and lagoons had formed, the crystalline water from the lake making the surroundings even more beautiful.

He scratched at the lower side of his jaw for a moment, before looking down at himself. Gone was the empty leather suit he had worn since the first day, now some light plate covered his arms and legs and chest piece. Enough protection to endure a beating from the low leveled enemies around so far.

His Anneal Blade +4 rested on his belt, and a Buckler lay in his inventory if he would ever need to use it. Better be prepared for anything.

"So, you did come then." Came a voice from behind him.

Corvus raised a brow for a moment, his hand moving down to grasp the hilt of his blade out of instinct before he turned from the pillar towards the direction of the male's voice.

A grin immediately spread through his features at seeing who the other male was.

"Snow! I've been searching for you these pasts few weeks!"

His friend, from the real world, stood there. Dressed in what were the beginnings of a heavily armed plated armor, blue on the leather parts upon his arms and legs. His dark brown hair and eyes of the same color were a fleeting memory for Corvus. Yet a welcome sight now.

Snow smiled back and said, "Yet by my sources, you've been all over the place leveling up like crazy."

Corvus laughed as he approached his friend, who was older than him for six years, yet was half ahead shorter than himself, which was hilarious to him to no end. "So what are you now then, bud, an info broker?"

The two grasped each other's forearms as they smiled to each other.

"Not at all, I just have good contacts. But no, I've actually become a blacksmith." Snow said once he had retrieved his hand, then scratched at the stubble along his chin and jaw.

"Of course you have, just like in most MMOs you play."

"And now you're in a damage build, right?" A smirk covered his friend's lips.

Corvus scoffed at the tone Snow had used, one of poking fun, "Of course I am, you know it's always been my best."

"Ah, then we're both guilty of the same sin."

"I'm only missing my magic though." Corvus muttered, considering something.

Snow chuckled as he shook his head. "Come with me, my friend. We have things to talk about."

The hazel-eyed player's head tilted for a moment before saying, "We do need to catch up on a lot."

Both walked at each other's side in direction to the mountains, Corvus noticed. And from his position, he could noticed the sword and shield his friend had attached to his back. "Indeed we do." He paused as he looked at his friend, "How have you been, Corvus, considering the news."

The swordsman let a sigh escape his lips as he responded. "It's been tough, I'll admit. I just know we have to finish the game. Mom must be devastated."

Snow's head nodded slowly as they began to move uphill, the temperature seeming to drop every hundred feet. "Just what we needed, no? A death trap."

"How about you, Snow? How have you been?"

A shrug of his shoulders and a quiet remark. "As well as can be expected, I guess. No depression came along with knowing the news, as it happened to some other players."

"Even the ones who threw themselves off the edge of Aincrad… Players need hope around here, else we're all lost."

Snow nodded at that. "So, I've tried making myself useful. You'd be surprised with how much work a blacksmith can be filled with in only two days."

Corvus smirked as he equipped his Leather Coat over his suit as he could notice his breath fogging inches away from his mouth as he breathed. The mountain climate had hit in full force, luckily with no blizzard. The crunching of snow under their feet began not long after. "Newbies keeping you busy then?"

"Newbies, and more than a few Beta Testers as well. I believe I also have some competition, but they're minor for now."

"Someone's sounding more and cockier by the minute."

"A trait I acquired from you, obviously."

Corvus laughed at his friend's words, "Not at all, I just helped unlocking what was once locked."

He heard Snow chuckle as he also equipped a Coat over his armor.

"So where are we going then?" Corvus looked around at the unfamiliar snowy landscape in between the two peaks of the small mountain range.

"Exploring. Looking for the toughest Dungeon in the floor."

The hazel gaze widened for a moment, "So we can beat it first?"

"Exactly. That, and I need a few materials that are only gotten from here."

"Unique materials, interesting."

The swordsmen trudged through the snow, which now got up to their ankles. They could see several ruins nearby, against the borders of each peak. The gray stone gave ominous shadows to the landscape they were walking upon, though Corvus had to admit that he loved how the snow fell. "Yes. And you might like what I'll make with them."

"You sound sure of yourself."

Snow turned his head to smirk at Corvus, "I know you."

Corvus chuckled at that, "That you do." He responded, then pointed at a rounded looking ruin ahead of them, right in the middle of the two peaks. "I'm guessing this is it. Strange that it has no grand entrance."

"Indeed, this is it. And best way to hide, is to do it in plain sight, no?"

"Now you're starting to sound like me."

Snow grinned at that, nudging Corvus' side as they stepped onto the smooth white stone of the ruin, it being lifted off the ground a foot or two before dropping in what would seem a roofless bunker, and a door on one side of it, the door that lead inside. "How does it feel, to be an explorer?"

"Fantastic. Honestly it reminds me of that old game. You know, Skyrim?"

"Ah, there's one for the ages."

Corvus moved to the edge of the circle and stepped into a pressure plate, what caused a series of curved steps to slide out of the wall and down to the floor as he walked down. "Here we are now, first one in the ruins of… Whatever their name is."

"La'syn's Ruined Palace."

"Some Palace this is." Corvus groaned as he kicked at the stone beneath his feet.

"I'm guessing it'll be grander inside."

"I hope so." Corvus said as he stepped towards the door and pressed his ear against the frozen stone of the rock, seeing if he could hear anything with his enhanced Hearing Skill.

"Anything?"

"Nothing that I can hear, it might require us to enter for it to activate the monsters inside." Corvus pulled back, placing his palm on the smooth texture of the door and pushed it open slowly.

"Perhaps. One thing's for sure though, we need to be ready for anything." Snow unsheathed his sword from his hip, and unlatched the large kite shield he had on his back, getting into defensive stance as Corvus stepped behind him, sword already in hand.

In almost silent steps, were it not for Snow's metal plated boots, they entered the dark, small corridor that would lead them into the Dungeon's first room. They expected a small room underneath, as they stepped down the long staircase they were in. Corvus had to make sure his footing was right as he pulled his blade close to his chest, so they could fit in correctly in the hallway.

What they entered, was not what they expected. A grand chamber, with an almost transparent glass bridge and a dark void below them, with no end as far as their sight went. "Alright… This is only slightly terrifying."

A snort from Snow as he placed a foot on the glass of the bridge, the start of it seemed firm enough to hold them. There they noticed, that the glass had small red, blue, and green lines along its texture, the colors moved as well, almost synchronized with one another. Like a river that lead to a monster's lair.

It was then when they heard it. A rumbling. Deep and slow. From below them, from the empty void beneath the glass bridge.

Halfway across, a crack sounded as Snow's foot stepped on the middle of the bridge. Both swordsmen looked down towards the crack, it slowly lengthened, making its way back from where they had come from. It chipped on the next step, pieces of it falling down into the empty pit. The rumbling stopped suddenly, its breathing-like rhythm stopping as well.

Both players stopped, glancing at each other, and then down into the void.

The sound of movement, of brushing, of metal grinding of stone then filled the cavern as a small light came from above them, and snow fell in between both. The glass cracked further, this time extending to the other side of the bridge.

They looked at each other again, deciding to quicken their steps as they half-trotted towards the other side.

A large fracture behind them, across the middle of the bridge left their two choices clear. Cross the bridge, or fall into the hell pit below them, and whatever creature awaited for them. They chose the first, as they broke into a run across the bridge, it cracking all over the place, interrupting the canals of blue and red and green inside its crystalline structure.

Breathing hard, both managed to pass to the other side, right before the bridge broke in a thousand pieces behind them, and fell like a rain of colors into the void below them. The small light from above hitting one, and every of the little pieces in the way down. And in the brief moment of color, of light, of illumination around them, then they saw what awaited below them.

A huge red maw, with black, depthless eyes, the scales covering its body did little to hide the movements of its wings as it spread them, as the leather brushed against its body. It was not only huge, they realized, the immense void below them was its nest, and they had woken it by breaking the bridge.

La'syn's Doom, the Killer of Empires, it was called. The drake that had, by the game's lore, once invaded and ravaged the lands of King La'syn of the Elves. The drake that now was eyeing them like feast. A rumble suddenly started across the cavern as Corvus and Snow looked at each other, then darted into the passageway across from them that would lead them into another hallway.

"How do we kill that thing?!" Corvus' half yell, half whisper reached Snow's ears as they quickly stepped downwards.

"It's a drake, and I believe we just found the first in the game."

"Do you think that's the Dungeon Boss then?"

They both came into a large circular room, and on the walls, no passageways or entrances, or hallways. No, instead, only sarcophagi rested against the walls. And right across from them, in a platform, rested the only horizontally placed sarcophagus, this one lined with gold, and with small statues carved into the black stone it was made out of.

"I'm not actually-" Snow's foot stepped on a pressure plate, the sound of the sarcophagi around them breaking suddenly filling the silence. "... Sure."

Warriors, or skeletons in this case, stepped out of each of the sarcophagi, wearing heavily plated ancient armor, helmets that kept hidden gleaming light blue eyes underneath. The metal in their armor was a pure black color, almost the same that the sarcophagi themselves were made out of.

With hands on their several weapons, some with swords and shields, and others with great-axes and great swords, they approached the two players. What was strangest, was that their health bars still did not appear above them. No cursors either. Only their names, Ancient Royal Elven Guard.

Suddenly, the plates in their armor resonated as they stood at attention, backs straight, hands at their sides, which caused Snow to lift his shield in caution, Corvus' hand tightening its hold on the hilt of his Anneal Blade +4. A cracking sound came from the last, grand sarcophagus in the far end of the room, just in time for a rumble to escape from the cavern behind them.

The lid of the sarcophagus slid out of its place, and struck the stone floor beneath it as a white-armored figure rose from its inside, then proceeded to lift itself out and stand, holding a hand upon the edge of his previous resting place. Bright golden eyes, Corvus realized, and a crown with a bird's open wings atop it. Not a dragon's, but an actual bird's.

"Who dares step into my sacred tomb?" A deep, commanding voice came from the once dead King, whose mouth didn't move as he spoke. "Explorers, bandits, ransackers perhaps?"

Corvus stepped forward as the soldiers around them turned to stare at them, their icy gaze digging into them. "Explorers, powerful King Ly'san."

The King's armored form stepped down from its platform, walking towards them. A large broadsword was attached to his back, its blade pristine white with golden adornments along the hilt. "Then it seems you're here right on time for the revival of my nemesis."

The hazel-eyed swordsman glanced over his shoulder at Snow, who pointed over his shoulder. Once he turned back to the King, whose face was only still such because of the skin that hung from the ample bones that formed his face, a sudden prompt appeared in front of him.

'New Quest!' It said on its top, and under, its name. 'King Ly'san's Revenge.'

Corvus stared at the King for a moment, before accepting the Quest, he heard Snow do the same behind them. The undead figure in front of them seemed to smile as he said. "I'll need all the support I can get to defeat this beast."

Then, every Royal Guard around them unsheathed their weapon. Snow sheathed his, as did Corvus, and stepped backwards to let the King pass in between them, then followed him outside towards the antechamber where the drake rested.

"My ancient enemy! Tye'las!" The King yelled down into the void, from where a deep rumble responded.

Half the number of guards around them, ten of them, took bows from their backs and aimed what looked like obsidian-tipped arrows down to the drake, which was again hidden in the darkness.

"Come and fight me, you coward! Finish what you started two centuries ago!"

It was then that the drake's wings expanded, spreading to cover most of the void below them. Its depthless gaze staring at them only unnerved them. Both players unsheathed their weapons, and positioned their feet for an attack.

The King stepped backwards as the drake below them began to shake its wings, to lift them up and down slowly at first, but enough to create a wind current in the large cavern. The undead royal spoke to them. "You need to kill it. Get ready to jump onto it."

Snow and Corvus looked at each other, eyes narrowed for a moment. The latter gulped as he took in the two bars of health Ly'san's Doom, the Killer of Empires had beneath its name. Both nodded at each other as they stepped backwards.

"Archers, release your arrows!" Rasped out one of the soldiers at the edge of the cliff.

The obsidian in the arrow-tips suddenly lit up in red, the color covering the arrows completely before a second passed. As the archers released their shots, them raining down onto the hidden drake beneath them, a loud screech that made the cavern's walls shake resounded, and stone to fall from the broken ceiling above them, the hole on top of them opening further as light came through.

What they saw terrified both, yet none of them shook, their eyes only widening as the second bar had completely disappeared and they could see the arrows now dug in between the drake's black scales.

The booming of its wings and the King's sudden, "Now! Jump!" was all the notice they received before the drake shot from the void in between them, and they were pushed over the ledge by the undead soldiers behind them.

The drake's maw opened, and began to gather a bright orange-red inside it, as both players, with their weapons out and ready to cling into anything they could. The fire shot towards them, and they could only spread their arms and legs as the freefall let them curve slightly, avoiding the flames just barely, only for the large drake to reach them, it being at least ten times both their sizes.

Out of instinct, both their blades struck home in between the drake's scales, burying the tips in until blood spurted out of Ly'san's Doom's back. The drake screeched above them, its legs pinned against its front as it broke through the ceiling of the cavern, and boomed into the sky above.

Corvus had his eyes closed as the drake's wings beat again, throwing them upwards into the sky. Snow, he noticed, had been holding on for dear life to the hilt of his blade. His feet tried to find a place against the scales as he barely hung onto his Anneal Blade +4.

His Strength must've been increasing like crazy at the moment, he thought as the dragon angled itself, and Corvus considered if the other players across the Floor were able to see them or if them doing the quest was somehow instanced. Once the drake righted itself, and began to do a series of quick zig-zags that almost forced them to release their blades, Corvus' free hand grasped one of the scales further ahead towards the drake's head.

Being halfway across its body, and on top was out of luck, he supposed, though Snow was on the opposite side. He looked at his friend and smirked slightly, jerking his head ahead towards the drake's head. A nod in return was what he needed as his hand tightened its hold on the scale it had grasped, and pulled his now-bloodied Anneal Blade +4 out of the drake's back, only to bury it a few feet ahead of himself as he had managed to advance with a haul of his arm. He felt as if his muscles ached, though he supposed it was his fatigue hitting in.

Snow kept his pace as they both moved further towards the drake's large head, cutting his way through as he dug his blade down into whatever soft spots he could find, the black scales beneath them decreasing the durability of both their armor suits. "You have to be insane to try this one out, Corvus! You realize that we can both die if we do it wrong, right?!"

Corvus' laugh along with another stab of his blade into the drake's flesh was what Snow got in response. "I know! So let's make sure we do it right!" He pulled himself upwards as he reached the slightly more slender drake's long neck. The force of the pull by the wings beating kept forcing him to stop every few seconds.

The drake's roar was loud enough for whoever was kilometers away. Corvus looked ahead, blurry eyed, to see the Labyrinth ahead of them, the rounded, grand stone tower that would lead them up to Floor 2, which right now seemed so close for the swordsmen.

Snow, with the increased weight of his armor, shield and sword altogether had to stop at the base of the drake's neck, only to look down at the town that was beneath them. "Corvus! I believe we're flying above Tolbana right now!"

The swordsman looked down to see the tiled rooftops of the town, a slight smirk on his face as he buried his blade into the drake's flesh again, the responding roar sounding pained, though lower than before, reaching up to a screech as the blade buried itself further in.

They held on for dear life as the drake banked a hard right, in direction to the mountains they had come from, with another roar as its blood began to spurt from where Corvus and Snow's blades were buried.

Then it began to lower, banking forward and down to the ground as Corvus began to inch forward, the drake's horned head looking not too far away, and the ground below them seeming closer and closer by the second. His eyes began to tear up as the wind whipped his cheeks.

They passed right over the mountains, instead of landing on them, and they managed to see King Ly'san and his soldiers saluting in their direction, some still shooting arrows at them.

The Town of Beginnings, they could see quickly approaching as the drake continued to lower itself. They realized it was meaning to attack the city. Corvus groaned as he twisted the blade of his sword to the right, causing the drake to bank in the same direction, turning them back around towards Tolbana, where the clearing groups had joined up to clear the remaining Dungeons and advance through the Labyrinth.

Once the tip of the tall trees began to seem at their level, the drake's wingbeat decreasing by the second, Corvus tilted his blade downwards, which caused Ly'san's Doom, the Killer of Empires to beat his wings roughly upwards.

The sun was beginning to set as they saw Tolbana's gates approaching, and a large group of players walking through the small forest that lead to the city. They began to point upwards at the falling drake, some unsheathing their weapons. Corvus' idea was to make the drake fall near the clearing groups so they could finish it off, but once he noticed the drake's health bar on its last inches, he decided to do something reckless.

The drake kept beating upwards as he twisted his blade again, which caused the large beast to halt its wingbeat, only for Corvus to pull his Anneal Blade +4 out of its flesh as he was thrown upwards.

"What are you doing, you idiot?!" Came Snow's yell as he saw Corvus above the drake's head, its maw opening wide to devour him.

Corvus smirked as he stared at death in the face, and saw his opportunity as the dragon's jaw collected its flames to fire at the player above it. The hazel-eyed swordsman angled his blade and twisted himself so he was diving towards the drake, and as it shot its flames upwards, nearly missing Corvus' body, he charged his Anneal Blade +4 and released the Sonic Leap Skill he had started as he kicked off the drake's neck, burying the blade down its now burning throat.

"Corvus!" He barely heard Snow's scream as he dived down.

A yell escaped from his lips as he continued to drive his blade down, cutting completely through the drake's weak spots, neck and belly, doing his best not to look down as the ground closed by quickly, too fast, he realized.

Corvus knew he may die doing it, but the idea was perfect. Give the rest of the players hope, more importantly, give the clearing groups a proof that the game can actually be beaten. If it was a sacrifice, then it was worth it to get everyone out as well.

The drake's health bars depleted, emptying completely as its flames died out, and it roughly fell right next to the road that lead into Tolbana, its enormous body seeming to create a crater beneath it.

* * *

"What the-"

"The hell happened?"

"Who are these guys?"

"Where did the dragon even come from?"

"How are they still alive?"

Corvus' eyes slowly began to flutter open as the questions registered themselves in his mind. Not believing what he heard, he attempted to move, finding he had a big problem at doing so. His interface appeared as he looked up to his health bar, and saw that it was an inch from death.

He saw Snow stand beside him, to the other side of the hole they were in. "Corvus! Are you-" Several players looked down upon them from the top, some wide-eyed, some already moving down to help them.

A groan escaped his lips as a prompt appeared in his interface.

'Congratulation' on the top. And under, 'You got the last attacking bonus!'

Then a smaller prompt opened, which said, 'Bonus Item'. And beneath it 'The Blackheart Suit'.

He passed out before he could recognize and remember what had happened.

His muscles ached, his bones ached, his head ached, and everything ached.

His eyes opened, fluttered open slowly, only to find himself in a small inn room. He felt the bed underneath him, his fingers spreading. Then he touched his chest and face, unhurt, though dressed in a black undershirt and leather pants.

Corvus remained still for a few moments, breathing out once the pain had subsided, before sliding to the edge of the bed, and slowly standing from it, stumbling as he leaned against the wall behind, before trying to stand again.

He shook his head to clear off the blurriness in his eyes as he noticed the setting sun outside a window, the orange color being the most noticeable. His hand swiped down as he opened his menu, searching for his equipment, realizing his leather suit and Anneal Blade +4 were still there, though a look at his amount of Col had his gaze widening.

"Where in hell did I get five hundred thousand…?" He muttered as he calculated how much he had gotten, in addition to what he already had. A strange item appeared in his inventory as well, a new leather suit by its name, The Blackheart Suit.

He hummed as he quietly stepped towards the door that he supposed lead outside, only to cover his eyes at the intensity of the light that suddenly surrounded him. He had not expected to come out right in the sunset's direction. The sun seemed like a golden halo, of light and brilliance.

A voice came from behind him as Corvus leaned against the railing, looking down at the tiled rooftops, of Tolbana. "Glad to see you up and alive, Corvus. You had me worried."

The swordsman smiled over his shoulder at seeing Snow, "I'm guessing you were the one who brought me here then, bud. How long was I out?"

The older male nodded his head as he leaned against the railing as well, to his left a staircase that lead to a small patio of the inn they were in, players were talking at some of the tables, some even drinking. "I was, yes, along with some players of the clearing groups. And you were out almost an hour, I'd reason that your consciousness was recovering from the fall."

Corvus hummed at that, then looked towards the sunset again, before looking back at Snow, "Did we finish the damned quest?"

"Almost, actually, I think we have the last stage remaining."

"Which is?"

"To get back to King Ly'san."

The hazel-eyed player groaned as his hand lifted to scratch his head, "So we have to return to that mountain."

"That we have to. Yet for some reason, I believe the Col we were given was part of the quest, or at least, a reward by killing the first Dragon in the game." Snow's tone seemed prideful, if not a bit cocky.

Corvus' brow raised at that, curiosity lining his features, "So it was the first one then?"

"That it was, and unfortunately, we now have, by the looks of it, a group of followers."

The swordsman laughed at that, "This I want to see. I know being around much people annoys you. But I'm interested."

The tank player nodded his head, "Of course you are. Well then, when you're ready, you can come down and say hello. I think they're interested in seeing if you'd join the clearing groups."

Corvus smiled as he said, "I'll go down soon."

Snow motioned for a moment before walking back down the stairs to the tavern.

The hazel-eyed player turned to the sunset again, seeing several players walking around the main plaza. He muttered beneath his breath, "So I guess now I'm some kind of celebrity… Just what I needed." His hand swept downwards as his menu opened up, and opened his inventory to see his new armor suit.

He pressed the 'button' to wear it as a hood covered his head, and a black long robe-like suit. He could feel several metal pieces throughout the suit, and an almost rough texture upon his armguard.

Corvus smiled at the new armor, seeing his stats move to what one could tell was a completely other level, and moved down the stairs to join the rest of the players in the tavern dressed in his new dark suit.

* * *

 ** _Hope you all enjoyed reading that! You know fanfictions, editing some stuff here or there, adding. Will try not to interrupt much the flow of events, the core of SAO, Kirito's adventures throughout. Side stories and missions will be mentioned though! Maybe a little bit added like I did in the second chapter._**

 ** _Thank you all for reading! And if you feel like it, please leave a review, they help a lot for the writing of more!_**

 ** _(Also, imagine Corvus' new suit something like a dark version of Ezio's robe from Assassin's Creed 2!)_**


	4. Chapter 4

_**Good evening everyone! I'm sorry it took so long, been having quite the busy "summer time" as some would say. Also, the couple of reviews I got helped me a bit,a nd gave me the motivation to continue, also those who have 'favorited'!**_

 _ **But to answer my reviewers until now:**_

 ** _Herosassin: Thank you for the compliments! Really, I'm trying to go without editing much of the original story, this is after all, a Fanfiction._**

 ** _RedAce16: Thanks! Kirito will be appearing more often in the coming chapters, when considering I'll follow some small parts of the Light Novels to follow up with the next first floors, after that, it'll be all in our new mains. This is, after all, their story in this fantastic setting. And Anna? Actually in the next couple of chapters! We'll see her character progress some more. And hope you enjoy what comes next! Just some character development, and new characters!_**

 _ **Thank you to my reviewers and 'favoriters', and of course, my followers! Here we go with a new chapter that I had written a while ago, and just needed editing. I'll be woking on 5 next.**_

 _ **Enjoy!**_

* * *

 _ **Chapter 4**_

Dragon Hunters, the other players had begun to call them, almost venerating them for what they had done, to Snow's annoyance.

Corvus on the other hand, felt as if his ego were stroked every day.

"So then, guys, have you all read your Guidebooks by now?" Said the hazel-eyed hunter as he leaned against one of the tavern's tables.

It had been two days since the defeat of Ly'san's Doom, the Killer of Empires, the completing of Corvus and Snow's Quest, and the discovery of the town of Tolbana.

Two days of continued meetings and reunions for Corvus to head along with the rest of the few clearing groups that had arrived. The leaders weren't as experienced except for one, a redheaded male called Klein. Guy knew what he was doing.

The two had sat together a couple of times to talk about what they knew, Corvus gaining some information about the player. Being an ex-Guild Leader brought them both experience when dealing with people. And they had managed to gather a fair amount of players by then as well, at least players had joined their group conglomeration.

The players at his table, whose names were Chris, Ray, Lukas, Syris, Hynt, and the two females, Triss and Salis.

Syris had become Corvus' second in command, Hynt following afterwards. While Syris' blonde hair and beard contrasted against Corvus' dark brown-black, Hynt's practically white braids, as he tended to keep his hair braided backwards, had been the lightest tone the entire group had ever seen.

Both Syris and Hynt were older than Corvus, barely by a year or two, which kept the group's average age around fifteen years old.

Chris was the youngest of them, being thirteen years old still had its perks though. Especially when he used those perks to entrance the few percentage of female players that came around Tolbana. Doing his technique he called 'puppy eyes'. His light auburn hair did make a huge difference with his clear blue eyes, something that managed to bring the strangest of conversations among the group at times.

Ray and Lukas were twin brothers, both looking almost the same were it not for the first having a deep brown gaze, and the latter a light green shade. Their black hair kept them equal if one looked from behind.

As for the two females on the group, cousins, close cousins. Triss with her blonde long tresses, tended to get most of the male players' attention around them, her bubbly personality getting it otherwise.

Salis on the other side, had dyed her short hair a dark blue from the dark brown it used to be. Her brown eyes looked around curiously as usual. The Tracker, they called her, she had been helping Corvus with his Searching Skill in the past evenings.

"I believe we've all read them by now, yes." Responded Syris as he looked suspiciously towards the twins.

The twins both had these mischievous smirks on their faces as they stared back towards Syris, though nodded their heads at Corvus.

With a smile, Triss suddenly chirped up, "I've read all of the 1st Floor by now." Which caused the group to laugh quietly.

Salis contributed to her friend's statement, "Mysterious thing was that it didn't tell about the Drake you and Snow were fighting with."

Hynt leaned forward upon the table as he muttered, "The Fuurinkazan were searching for information about that." That got Corvus' attention, which caused the white-haired man to contribute with "Klein's group."

"Ah." The hazel-eyed player gave a nod of his head as the group began to converse between themselves. Corvus remained silent for a few minutes, smiling as he observed his group members interact with each other.

Once the laughing continued, he pushed off the table and said, "I'll be back soon, guys. Girls, please watch over the twins."

Triss and Salis looked dumbfounded back at Corvus, the twins in front of them grinning. The Twin Calamities were known like that for a reason around the clearing groups in the first Floor.

Corvus kept moving down the road and on his way out of the small patio, out to the main plaza of the town, and sat on the edge of a large fountain in front of what he supposed was the main church in the city.

At that moment, Snow, who had been in the shade of one of the trees nearby, approached him, saying, "I'll be busy this morning, crafting that something that I had mentioned to you a couple days ago."

Corvus smiled up to his friend, "Alright. Then I'll be scouting ahead towards the Labyrinth. Keep a watch over them, will you?"

Snow grunted at that, his arms crossing though he didn't answer. Corvus laughed at his response, already being used to his friend's reactions.

The older male stared at him for a few moments. "Just don't get killed, Corvus. Be careful in there."

The swordsman smirked as he stood, spreading his hands as he said, "I will, I'm always careful, after all."

"You say that after throwing yourself off a dragon?"

Corvus grinned at his friend as he equipped his Anneal Blade +5, enhanced by Snow the day before, and gave a courteous, mocking bow. "With all my splendor, yes." The twinkling in his eyes made it clear he was joking. He turned to leave as a hand laid on his shoulder.

Snow's stare was dead-serious as the hazel-eyed male turned to face him. "I mean it."

They stared at each other for a moment as Corvus stated. "I will be."

His friend nodded as he turned his back to him, and headed down the northern road to where he supposed was the blacksmith in the town.

Corvus turned again, glancing at the players around him who smiled at him, himself waving a hand as he folded his hands in his pockets after pulling his dark hood on, and walking towards the city gates.

—-

Corvus didn't really know why he had actually entered the Labyrinth, perhaps he just wanted some time alone to relax. He realized he missed his books, worlds in which to lose himself.

Though, he also knew that he was in one of such worlds.

That much became clear to him again as a Ruin Kobold Trooper came around the corner of the dark hallway he was walking through.

A small humanoid wearing no armor, or top for that matter, only pants, and wielding a barbaric war axe. The rabbit-like ears it had made Corvus chuckle, though its tail reminded him of a lizard's.

He stood near the entrance of the Labyrinth as he watched the Trooper slowly step down the corridor, his Searching Skill activating as he scanned the corridor for any traps, though finding nothing but footsteps that lead from the grand gates behind him to a small spot where the wall sunk into the side a foot or two.

Inside which, a hooded player seemed to be either hiding from the Trooper, or avoiding it. Hiding that close to where the enemy turned was not a good idea, as some could detect a player if their Hiding Skill wasn't high enough.

With a raspy growl, the Kobold turned to face the sunken spot on the wall, and lifted an arm to strike the player with its battle-axe.

Corvus reacted first, unsheathing his sword and charging it in one swift movement with his Slant Skill. When the Trooper's battle axe fell, Corvus could see it slowly dropping as he was thrown in a flash of golden light towards it.

A flash of purple interrupted as a Sword Skill cut through the monster's bare neck. Corvus' blade slashed across its back the second after as his Skill unleashed into the Trooper.

The Kobold exploded into fragments as his hazel stare gazed into pale green eyes looking up at him.

"Why are you hiding?"

"... Is it wrong that I am?" A small voice said from beneath the dark blue hooded cape.

"Considering the monsters see you as soon as they curve that turn. Not sure if wrong, but it is unnecessary." Corvus kept his blade in hand as he glanced over at the corner, then his fellow player stood from their position.

If Snow managed to stand not higher than Corvus' eyebrows, this player didn't even reach his nose in height.

"Thank you for your help then, and your advice. But I know monsters here respawn quickly, so you might want to be careful." The blue-covered player swished in their clothes as they turned their back on the swordsman, unsheathing a wicked-looking dagger from their belt.

Corvus looked at their health bar to notice it was barely on the yellow third, nearly bordering the red. "Why haven't you healed by now?"

His fellow player didn't answer as they strode forward to combat the next Ruin Kobold Trooper, which had curved around the turn the other had just minutes earlier.

Corvus got into his usual fighting stance as if it were second nature, sword at the ready, knees bending slightly. He stepped across the space the other player had walked, and opened his mouth for a moment just as they darted ahead with a charged Sword Skill.

The Trooper managed to throw a wild slash with its battle-axe right before the other player's slim sword cut through its neck.

Corvus had to blink twice as the hooded player's health decreased an inch closer to its end, and the Kobold in front of them exploded into polygons. Only for said player to almost fall onto the floor, were it not for the hazel-eyed swordsman's quick reaction.

As he held the player in his arms he noticed a few details he hadn't been able to see in the darkness of the Labyrinth.

First, that they were a she, and given the wide curve of her hips and the two mounds upon her chest, which were very noticeable, he could easily tell she had a pear shape. Second, that her face had a small cute button nose, slim eyebrows, thin and delicate lips, and a general inverted teardrop face shape that caused her to be completely and utterly attractive to his senses. And third, that she would probably be near to killing him if she knew he had eyed her more than a bit.

With that, he decided the first thing to do, was to take her someplace safe, outside of the Labyrinth. He did not know when she would wake up, though he didn't expect it to take that long. And so, he picked her up carefully off the ground, making sure to balance her weight and his own well, noting how his Strength stats actually aided majorly in what he did, and walked down to the end of the hallway, back to the exit, and out on his way to Tolbana.

Sitting on one of the chairs in the inn room, Corvus sipped on a warm cup of milk, as he tended to do during the cold winter evenings, watching how the sun continued to descend in the skybox above the First Floor, illuminating the last remaining bits of its sunlight for the day cycle.

The group had been difficult to deal with when he showed up back at the tavern, not to say how most players around him reacted to him walking back into town with a hooded player in his arms. None of them approached, though they eyed him carefully at first before nodding. Triss and Salis were the first ones to perk up at seeing the girl in Corvus' arms, both moving quickly to ask him what in the world had happened.

When the Twins showed up, they had silently looked at each other and smiled at Corvus before making their way upstairs to order up the bedroom that their apparent group leader had used just hours ago in the morning.

They knew that Corvus would be buying his own small forest property just outside of town, but they did their best to make sure he was comfortable enough. As much as he didn't think himself as deserving of their attentions, he was supremely grateful to them. He also knew that while they could be the most serious disaster that could happen to Aincrad, they could be the best pair of young ones that could be found around.

Snow hadn't yet returned from his crafting, though Corvus made sure to send him a message as soon as he laid the girl down on the bed within the inn room he used.

Hynt and Syris were both preoccupied over the player in Corvus' arms state of health. They conversed for a small while on how one could actually faint in the game itself, though they all fell into the hypothesis that, along with the fatigue of the constant fighting that she may have had, and that included with the inability to heal oneself, such would make anyone feel exhaustion after hours of constant exercising. They had left minutes ago, and from then Corvus had looked out of the small window in the room, glancing right to the girl laying on the bed every once in a while.

A quiet moan broke through his reverie as his thumb brushed along the underside of his jaw, he turned his head to look back towards the player on his bed, who seemed to be registering her surroundings, her gaze seeming extremely curious, though there was a hint of worry deep in those pale green orbs.

"Don't worry. You're not in danger." He said in a calm tone as he observed her from the corner of his view. She looked over at him as she moved a hand up to brush her hood briefly. "And I didn't touch you at all other than to move you."

"Why would I trust what you say?" Her gaze seemed to burn in green flame as she watched him.

"Because we would be in a completely other situation if I was lying."

The player on the bed seemed to remain silent as her eyes lowered slightly, then she muttered a soft, "... Thank you."

"It's the least I could do. I would not let a player die in that Labyrinth if I could do anything to avoid such." Corvus turned to face her as he spoke, his eyes traveling to see if she still had any cuts on her frame. None that he could notice after he gave her one of his healing potions, which took effect and completely healed her after a few minutes.

The few rips he could see upon her hooded cape was enough to make him ask. "How long had you been in there by the time I arrived?"

"I think… Since yesterday. I had packed up a few supplies to grind what little I could." She answered in that same low tone, as he approached, then sat down on the chair a couple feet away from the bed to be almost at her height as she laid on the bedding.

"Why hadn't you returned as soon as you ran out of supplies?" He paused for a moment as he considered. "Did you sleep at all through the night?"

A shake of her head as she pulled her blue hood off her head to reveal her dark red hair, a dark crimson, or a dark auburn, Corvus still had to figure it out. Her fair features were even prettier as she twirled the end of her braid around her fingers slowly, remaining silent.

"So either you didn't sleep… Or you tried to sleep, in the safe zones, maybe?"

A slight nod of her head followed as her gaze raised, and looked up at him, almost seeming like she analyzed him. "What's your name?"

"I'm Corvus, and it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The smirk that marked his lips did not reach his troubled eyes. "What about you?"

The player seemed troubled again, silent.

"Hey, I know you have no reason to trust me, other than the fact that I did pull you out of the Labyrinth when your fatigue reached a limit. But every once in a while, it's good to give it a go." He paused for a moment, then said. "I mean, I haven't given you a reason not to trust me, I think."

Pale hazel eyes watched him carefully, before slowly softening their sharpness. "I'm Rayne."

Corvus smiled at her as he spread a hand towards her, "As I said, it's good to meet you."

The girl seemed to hesitate again before letting go of her braid to reach a delicate pale hand for his, taking it in what he could only tell was careful shyness. "... Why is it good to meet me?"

The hazel-eyed swordsman tilted his head at her words, his attention sticking to the tone she had used. Self-deprecation, or she did not think much of herself. He considered what to say. "Because you seem interesting to me. Though, perhaps a bit hidden. It's always good to meet new people, new perspectives, and new ways of thinking. People to care about, or simply to like as company, as friends."

She eyed him carefully, weighing his words. "What if some people only want to hurt others? What if they are greedy and selfish?"

Good questions. He would need to think on his next words. "While there are some like that, who can bring hurt and sorrow to others, I've always found that there's a gut feeling when around them which we get, perhaps a warning. At least I get it every so often. Don't you?"

Her pale green gaze seemed to shift for a moment as she glanced around her, viewing her surroundings. "I do, sometimes."

Corvus hummed as he looked at their still joined hands, hers being much smaller than his own, though more delicate, slim fingers that grasped the side of his hand. In a gentle movement, he released his hold on her hand before standing from his chair. "I'm sure some of the group will come to see you. The girls had just gone to gather crystals and potions for you, Rayne."

The narrowing of her eyes, along with the angling of her chin made him say, "They're the ones who have been keeping an eye on you while I've been out." He looked towards the falling dusk outside before turning to her again, "You're welcome to stay here for as long as you'd like, and when you feel ready and if you would like to meet my group, they're right outside, downstairs in the patio."

The slow nod that followed made him know it was time to move back downstairs. As he had his hand on the door's knob, her soft voice sounded behind him. "Thank you, Corvus."

He smiled over his shoulder at the redhead, nodding his head. "Anytime, Rayne." Then left the room with the closing of the door behind him, and proceeded down the stairs to the patio, where his group seemed to be playing with dice.

Snow looked to the sun as it began to set, making its way beneath the line of the First Floor's horizon. "Another day passes in Aincrad…"

He looked over towards the direction of the tavern in the town as he mused to himself. He'd received a message from Corvus not too long ago regarding a girl he'd found in the Labyrinth, and it had piqued his own curiosity. That said, knowing Corvus, he'd likely be trying to befriend them already. He never could just meet someone and send them on their way.

With a large sigh, Snow turned from the Blacksmithing station he'd been at, lifting a rather standard-fare sword he'd crafted upwards, resting the flat of the blade on his shoulder. With quicker than usual steps - he always walked fast - he made his way to the tavern, sparing the occasional glance towards others who passed him by on his way.

Upon entering the tavern and making his way to the patio, he immediately noticed Corvus' band of merry-men playing some sort of dice game. Corvus was coming down the stairs, though, so he made his way over to him.

"Corvus, good to see you're well. What's the situation with the girl?" He tilted his head as he spoke, looking up the stairs Corvus had come from, before back to the young man himself.

With a smile and a slightly distant expression Corvus replied. "Thanks. And she's doing well. A little unsettled, but otherwise fine. Her name's Rayne by the way."

Snow nodded slowly. "I… see. Planning to keep her?"

Corvus frowned. "Keep her? She's not an item."

With a dismissive wave of his hand, Snow shook his head. "You know what I mean. I don't imply she's an item, merely that you like to keep people around you. Especially the girls.

At that Corvus couldn't help but grin, which caused a wry smirk and eye roll from Snow. "Mhm. Yes, I'm sure you're proud of all the attention you seem to get."

Corvus continued merely to grin for a few moments more. "Hey, our group's more guys isn't it?" Before a reply came, he tilted his head curiously. "Though where'd you come from by the way, weren't you keeping an eye on everyone?"

Snow nodded. "I was. And I did. Up until I asked if Syris could manage it while I went to craft something. He said he could."

With a lifted right hand, Corvus pointed to the sword resting on Snow's shoulder. "That's it there?"

Snow nodded, hefting the sword in front of him, holding it between both hands. The sword was rather unassuming, a plain steel-colored blade, with an upturned hilt, and a single jewel in the pommel. As Corvus opened his mouth, Snow spoke. "It's nothing special, before you get your hopes up. It's just a common gem. Just for a little added flair really."

Corvus seemed a little disappointed judging by the expression on his features.

With a large intake of breath and exhale, lifting the sword over his shoulder once more, Snow added, "Don't worry, this isn't the gift for you. I'll get it to you soon, though. This was just a light extra sword. Hardly my best, but it's better than the sword - I forget exactly who - was using. Minor upgrade really, but yeah, every little bit helps, right?"

"Right." Corvus nodded, turning his attention over to the main group. "Should we go say hi?"

Snow took a large breath, closing his eyes for a moment, before opening them again. "Yes, I suppose we should go be sociable."

"Come on, Snow, get to know them. They're good people."

Snow merely gave an, "Mhm." as he followed Corvus over to the main group.

"Hey, Corvus!" Came the first voice, Syris' it appeared. After noticing Snow beside his younger friend, Syris added a nod to him as well. "Hey, Snow. Don't worry, group's all fine."

Snow nodded stoically, then looked around for any nearby chairs. Noting only the one, he gestured for Corvus to take it and join the group, while he himself crouched nearby, shifting his weight occasionally to reduce the blood flow problem from cutting off circulation too much.

Not long after he'd crouched, Snow was approached by Chris. "Hey, Snow…"

Snow nodded, his tone between neutral and friendly. "Yeah?"

Chris shifted back and forth on the balls of his feet, offering a smile. "Why are you called Snow?"

A chuckle accompanied the reply, which had a hint of good-natured sarcasm. "It's my snow colored hair and beard."

Hynt, whose hair and braids actually _were_ practically white looked his way, and looked Snow over.

Snow grinned and shook his head. "That… That was a joke. But if I went for my actual hair color, what would you want, Dirt? Doesn't sound the best to me. I suppose I just liked the name. There's more to it, but maybe I'll tell you later, hm?"

Chris pouted. "Can't you tell me now?" His expression braced, before he widened his eyes and said in an incredibly adorable manner, "Pweeeeease?"

Snow chuckled and sighed. "Sorry, that doesn't work on me. I'm cold and heartless."

Nearby Corvus scoffed at that. "Yeah, right."

Snow shrugged. "Some say it about me." He scratched at the stubble of his beard absently, not thinking much of his statement.

Corvus shook his head. "Not those who know you, bud."

In response, Snow gave a teasing grin. "Getting all sentimental on me, there?"

Corvus rolled his eyes playfully, responding with a simple, "Yeah yeah." Before turning his attention back to the group. Somewhat disappointed, Chris also made his way off. Now undisturbed, Snow remembered the sword he'd brought with him, and stood, looking around the group.

He waited for a break in the current conversation, which revolved around the dice game most of them were playing, then spoke. "So, who here needs a new sword? I remember seeing one of you with a lower tier weapon and thought I'd make a new one."

Over at the far end, Triss looked up to Snow, then nudged Salis, who looked up as well, gazing over towards him. He gave a tilted nod to Salis, lifting the sword slightly, as if to ask if she was the one who wanted it.

With a soft nod as his response, he made his way around the table the main group was at, to Triss and Salis. "Evening you two. Salis, if I recall correctly?" He asked, his dark brown gaze focused on the latter of the two girls.

Salis nodded. "Yes, sir."

Snow blinked, looking himself up and down. "Is it the beard? I'm only twenty you know."

"Old man!" Corvus called out from behind him, clearly managing to pay attention to multiple conversations at once.

"Respect your elders!" Came the reply from Snow, the brief exchange between the two getting a laugh out of the others in the group. Turning his attention back to Salis, he added, "Just Snow is fine."

With a nod as the reply, Snow lifted the sword off his shoulder fully, and held it out for her. "I made it out of a speed type metal, so it should be on the lighter side for you. If you prefer it with more weight, let me know, and I can see about the next one I make for you having more weight to it. All good?"

Salis nodded with a light smile. "Thanks… Snow."

A tilted nod came in response, as Snow handed over the sword. "Of course." He gave a two-fingered wave as he made his way back over to the other side of the group, taking up a position - standing this time - next to Corvus.

"Hey, bud. Salis like the present?"

Snow looks to the sitting Corvus. "I know where you're going with this, and it wasn't a present, it was an upgrade to her existing weapon."

Corvus grinned. "So you weren't trying to get her attention, then?"

Snow shook his head with a grin of his own. "You may recall, I didn't even remember who the upgrade was for."

"Uh huh." Was the only reply that came, as Corvus kept that grin on his face.

Snow looked to the sitting Corvus. "I know where you're going with this, and it wasn't a present, it was an upgrade to her existing weapon."

Corvus grinned. "So you weren't trying to get her attention, then?"

Snow shook his head with a grin of his own. "You may recall, I didn't even remember who the upgrade was for."

"Uh huh." Was the only reply that came, as Corvus kept that grin on his face.

Corvus' expression darkened for a moment, and Snow wasn't sure if he heard a soft growl.

"I'll take that as a no. Interested in her yourself, perhaps?"

Corvus took a breath and looked back to the group, not answering. Snow merely made a curious face, before letting the matter rest, and looking out over the group himself. The dice game they'd been playing seemed to have come to a rest, and now they were merely talking among themselves.

With a large intake and exhale of breath, Snow looked up the stairs to where he supposed Rayne was resting. He thought about going up there for a moment, but figured it would be better for the moment if he let her be. Corvus seemed oddly protective of her as well already, and Snow knew it was always best to pick your battles. As long as Corvus didn't mix himself up in anything foolish, he wouldn't press the matter.

Looking around the others, he made his way over Syris, before gesturing over to a quieter part of the patio. With a curious expression, the latter followed him over, moving to stand next to him. "Need something, Snow?"

Snow nodded, before gesturing over to Corvus. "Can you keep an eye on him?"

Gaining a confused look, Syris tilted his gaze. "I kind of always do, what did you mean, though?"

Snow took a breath, "Just… He can be swift to trust people, and I'm guessing he's already got a thing for the new girl he met. Call it a hunch. Just wanted to ask you to make sure he doesn't do anything reckless trying to impress her or anything."

Syris shrugged. "Who he's interested in is his business. I can't stop him from doing anything he wants to do."

With a sigh, Snow shook his head. "Not exactly what I'm asking. Just… never mind." He received a hand on his shoulder as he turned to walk off.

"Snow… Is there another reason you're asking?"

"You caught me. I'm secretly interested in Corvus myself."

A tilted stare was all Snow got in response, before he added, "That was a joke. No hidden agenda, Syris. I just want to look after him. I'd be just happy for him if it weren't for his tendency to be reckless. So just… yeah, try to keep him from doing anything stupid while I'm not around, okay?"

Syris sighed, taking his hand off Snow's shoulder. "Alright. I make no promises about being able to stop him, but I'll try to make sure he's not _too_ reckless."

Snow nodded. "All I ask." With that, Snow made his way back to the group, who were saying their goodnights for the evening, and to Corvus. "Corvus, I'll be wrapping up for the night. So talk to you again soon, alright?"

Corvus nodded with a smile. "Yeah! Talk to you soon, bud."

With that, Snow gave a nod of his head to his friend and the group, and proceeded out into the street that lead towards the main plaza in town. The amount of players around making him slightly uncomfortable as they began to crowd along the middle, where the fountain rested peacefully.

He made his way down the large road leading to some of the crafting stations placed near the center of the town, mulling over thoughts and questioning how and why had he gotten the specifical blueprints for the special mechanism that he would offer as a gift for his friend soon.

Darkness fell upon the town of Tolbana as its lights began to twinkle in the clear night, a soft mutter being heard around as players of Sword Art Online enjoyed one calmed evening.

* * *

 _ **Just some character development, as I said earlier, way calmer than the fighting from before. Honestly, I like to think I've been better with the action scenes than the character development or 'slower' parts as they are. Hopefully good as well here!**_

 _ **Thank you all for reading. Also, you know how I am about reviews, they're my motivation for writing other than my own fun, or time, which can seem limited. Always good to know that there's readers enjoying! Also, I take the constructive criticism well!**_

 _ ***nudges towards Reviews***_


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